-»  •*-• 


LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

OF* 


Class 


SAKURAMBO 


By 

JAMES  S.  DE  BENNEVILLE 


"Oh,  past  delights, 
Whereof  the  very  thought  excites 
A  thrill  in  every  limb,  as  though 
The  merry  life  of  long  ago 
I  lived  again." 

Romance  of  the  Rose 


(All  rights  reserved) 


SAKURAMBO 


By 

JAMES  S.  DE  BENNEVILLE 


"  Oh,  past  delights, 
Whereof  the  very  thought  excites 
A  thrill  in  every  limb,  as  though 
The  merry  life  of  long  ago 
I  lived  again." 

Romance  of  the  Rose 


ts  reserved) 


J14- 


Copyright,  1906 
By  JAMES  S.  DE  BENNEVILLE 


Press  of  J.  B.  LIPPINCOTT-  COMPANY 


?v 

THE 

UNIVERSITY  j 


or 


PREFACE 


In  travelling  through  the  highways  and  byways  of  a  country 
there  are  many  questions  which  present  themselves,  and  which  we 

d 

e 

t 

ERRATA    AND    MEMORANDA.  y 


Preface,  line  4  from  top,  read  —  "  As  we  pass  along  these  fields  and  roads  f 

and  thatched  houses."  e 

Page  12  —  transpose  line  1  to  follow  line  4  from  top.  , 

Page  21  —  line  2  from  top,  read  —  "  stove  "  instead  of  "  store." 
Page  67—  line  8  from  bottom,  read  —  "  shove  "  instead  of  "  shore." 
Page  71—  line  5  from  bottom,  read—"  rejected  "  instead  of  "  regretted." 
Page  89—  line  13  from  top,  read—"  so  to  this  "  etc. 

Page  94  —  line  11  from  top,  read  —  "  these  "  instead  of  "  those."  t 

Page  107  —  line  15.     The  date  given  by  the  Xihongi   (405  A.D.)  is  ^ 

generally  accepted  for  the  coming  of  the  Chinese  Scholar,  Waui. 
The  question  depends  somewhat  on  the  date  of  the  books  then 
introduced.  Cf.  under  Ojin  p.  294.  It  does  seem  a  long  time  | 

(405  —  552  A.D.)  for  nothing  to  be  known  of  Buddhism  in  Japan. 
Page  109  —  lines  8  and  12  read  —  "  Soga  no  Yemishi." 

Page  114  —  line  18  from  top  —  Bede  was  born  in  673  A.D.  * 

Page  138—  line  3  from  top,  read  -"  patent  "  instead  of  "  patient." 
Page  153  —  line  8  from  bottom,  read  —  "  obscene  "  instead  of  "  obscure." 
Page  167—  line  2  from  bottom,  read  —  "  Futaara  "  instead  of  "  Futarra." 
Page  168—  line  10  from  top,  read  —  "  Chiizenji  "  instead  of  "  Chozenji." 
Page  188  and  189  last  and  first  line,  read—"  transfer  of  the  family 

powers  to  the  State  "  etc.  5 

Page  221—  line  12  from  top,  read—"  Theos  "  instead  of  "  eThos."  f 

Page  228  Chapter  Title,  read—"  Hizen  "  instead  of  "  Risen." 
Pages  229  to  331—  For  page  heading,  read—"  From  Bungo  to  Hizen." 
Page  231  —  linelOfrom  top,  read  —  "  Kuroshiwo"  instead  of  "  Kusoshiwo." 
Page  268  Note,  read  -"  Kojiki  "  instead  of  "  Kojishi." 

Pagt's  269  to  273  —For  page  heading,  rend  —  "  The  Lind  of  Yamato."  i 

Page  298—  line  12  from  bottom,  re-id  —  Sir  Ernest  Satow. 
Page  306  add  closing  line—"  and  its  odd  habits." 

Page  308  to  close  —  For  page  bending,  read  —  "  Xunc  Dimittis."  f 

Page  337—  Inst  line,  read—"  10  *•  "instead  of  "  10M." 

;>:>,s.-line  2  from  top,  read—"  10-lfi  "  instead  of"  10  fi." 


J4- 


THE 

DIVERSITY 

of 


PREFACE 


In  travelling  through  the  highways  and  byways  of  a  country 
there  are  many  questions  which  present  themselves,  and  which  we 
try  to  answer  on  the  facts  familiar  to  us  of  our  own  present  and 
past,  require  a  resume  of  the  authorities  to  which  recourse  was  had 
so  numerously  sprinkled  over  the  land  of  Japan,  naturally  these 
questions  come  up,  to  which,  with  this  secretive  Oriental  people,  it 
is  difficult  to  find  an  answer.  The  material  of  this  book  is  largely 
made  of  personal  impressions  gained  by  four  years  of  travel 
through  its  countryside.  For  the  opinions  here  expressed,  only 
the  writer  is  responsible.  The  facts,  dealing  in  some  cases  with  the 
past,  require  a  resume  of  the  authorities  to  which  recourse  was  had 
to  obtain  such  facts. 

I  would  therefore  mention,  in  connection  with  Chapter  IV., 
Klaproth's  translation  of  the  O  Dai  Ichiran,  a  Japanese  dry-as-dust 
chronicle  compiled  about  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century,  and 
carried  down  to  1818  by  Klaproth  himself;  ''Land  Tenure  and 
Local  Institutions  in  Old  Japan,"  by  Simmons  and  Wigmore,  and 
"  Private  Law  in  Old  Japan,"  by  Wigmore,  especially  his  intro- 
duction. The  first-mentioned  is  published  in  the  Transactions  of  the 
Asiatic  Society  of  Japan,  Vol.  XIX.,  Part  I.  ;  the  second,  in  Vol. 
XX.,  the  Supplements.  Also,  mention  should  be  made  of  Dr. 
Knox's  translation  of  the  Hyo-chu-ori  of  Arai  Hakuseki  (Vol. 
XXX.,  Part  II.  ,  of  the  Transactions)  ;  also  of  Professor  Dropper's 
"  Population  of  the  Tokugawa  Period"  (Vol.  XX.,  Part  II.,  of 
the  Transactions).  As  to  Chapter  VI.,  I  would  refer  to  "  Ances- 
tor \Yorship  and  Japanese  Law,"  by  Professor  Nubushigi  Hozumi, 
and  to  Mr.  J.  H.  Gubbin's  introduction  to  and  translation  of  the 
civil  code  dealing  with  the  Family  in  Japan  ;  also  to  Professor  Pas- 
quale  Villari's  chapters  on  the  Feudal  System  in  Italy  and  Rise  of 
the  Communes,  in  his  "  History  of  Florence  ;  "  also  to  the  "  Institu- 
tions Politiques  du  Japon,"  by  Theophile  Collier.  As  to  Chapter 


PREFACE 

VII.,  Mr.  A.  G.  Lay's  paper  oh  "  Political  Parties  in  Japan  "  was 
consulted  (Transactions,  Vol.  XXX.,  Part  III.),  as  also  authorities 
more  specifically  referred  to  in  the  text.  As  to  Chapter  VIIL,  in 
addition  to  the  foot-note  placed  at  the  beginning  of  the  chapter, 
I  would  add  Mr.  L.  H.  Parker's  "  Race  Struggles  in  Korea  " 
(Transactions,  Vol.  XVIII.,  Part  II.),  and  Mr.  W.  G.  Aston's 
"  Early  History  of  Japan  "  (Transactions,  Vol.  XVI.). 

The  foreign  newspapers  published  in  Japan  are  also  a  valuable 
source  of  material.  These  contain  the  impressions  and  experiences 
of  men  resident  for  many  years  in  the  country.  Many  special 
articles  are  so  contributed,  especially  to  the  Japan  Times  (published 
by  Japanese,  in  English)  and  the  Japan  Daily  Mail,  the  latter  of 
which  has  a  monthly  summary  of  the  religious  and  native  press, 
covering  the  widest  range  of  subjects.  Histories  of  Japan  are 
numerous.  That  of  Murdoch  and  Yamagata  is  a  philosophical 
discussion  based  on  the  original  documents  of  the  period  from  the 
times  of  Nobunaga  to  the  death  of  lyeyasu.  Of  those  covering  the 
whole  period  of  Japanese  history  from  legendary  to  modern  times, 
mention  should  be  made  of  Murray's  "  History,"  in  the  Story  of 
Nations  series,  and  "  The  Mikado's  Empire,"  by  Doctor  Griffis. 

In  dealing  with  so  many  subjects  covering  a  wide  field  there 
is  ample  room  for  an  equally  wide  divergence  of  opinion.  In  the 
laws  of  Shotoku  Taishi  it  is  said :  "Be  not  angered  with  others  on 
account  of  disagreement  of  opinion.  Each  one  may  have  a  dif- 
ferent point  of  view,  and  may  therefore  come  to  a  different  con- 
clusion." All  that  can  be  asked  is  sincerity,  and  this  is  claimed 
for  the  present  volume.  And  one  word  as  to  the  title.  The 
cherry-blossom,  as  is  known,  is  distinctly  the  national  flower  of 
Japan.  The  tree  is  cultivated  with  reference  to  the  beautiful  spring 
bloom,  when  for  a  few  days  the  groves  are  a  sight  of  exquisite 
beauty.  Sakura  is  the  term  usually  applied  to  the  tree  itself,  as  we 
say  "  the  cherry  "  meaning  the  cherry-tree.  It  enters  into  many 
combinations:  Sakurabana,  the  cherry-blossom;  sakuraka,  the 
delicate  odour  of  the  blossom ;  sakuragari,  the  excursions  to  see  the 
blossoms ;  and  so  we  pass  on  to  the  fruit  of  the  tree — Sakurambo. 

OMARUDANI,  August  7,   1905. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.—  FROM   MY  JAPANESE  GARDEN  ....  1 

II.—  BOSHU  WAY         .......  33 

III.—  IWASHIRO  WAY  .......  70 

IV.—  THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE  .  .  .106 

V.—  THROUGH  KOTSUKE  ......  151 

VI.—  SHINANO  WAY    .......  185 

VII.—  FROM  BUNGO  TO  HIZEN    .....  228 

VIII.—  THE  LAND  OF  YAMATO      .....  268 

IX.—  NUNC  DIMITTIS  307 


SAKURAMBO 

i 

FROM  MY  JAPANESE  GARDEN 

"  We  went  on  board,  and  having  set  sail,  came  near  the  coast  of 
Lanternland.  We  then  saw  certain  little  hovering  fires  on  the 
sea." — Rabelais. 

it  was  one  of  the  trifling  incidents  of  life  that  led  me  to  pitch 
my  tent  among  this  strange  people.  A  sea  tossed  by  the  fresh  breeze 
into  a  mass  of  whitecaps,  a  cloudless  summer  day  monotonous 
in  its  sameness  to  the  similar  days  that  had  preceded  and  would 
follow  it,  the  desire  for  variety  even  if  only  in  the  weather,  and  a 
Japanese  ricksha  formed  the  compound  of  elements  required  to 
stiffen  up  the  vacillating  ego  to  say  "  I  shall."  There  were  also 
the  two  essential  stimulants  to  such  an  assertion  of  energy:  the 
direct  object  acting  as  reagent  and  the  ultimate  object  to  be  sought 
as  result.  The  direct  object  was  the  sea  itself.  There  is  some- 
thing about  the  presence  of  large  bodies  of  water  inciting  man  to 
get  on  them  or  in  them.  There  is  no  race  so  savage  or  so  self- 
supporting  in  its  present  habitat  that  it  has  not  been  tempted  beyond 
its  own  shores  to  seek  the  unknown.  Moreover  the  Pacific,  broad 
and  wide-expanding  as  it  is,  does  not  seem  such  a  lonely  ocean  as 
the  others.  There  is  always  an  island  lying  around  loose  some- 
where to  bump  into,  like  icebergs  in  season  in  the  North  Atlantic, 
and  although  men  go  down  to  the  sea  in  ships  on  the  Pacific  and 
never  return,  there  are  romances  of  sunny  isles,  brown-skinned 
maidens,  cocoanut  palms  and  giant  decapods,  to  stimulate  curi- 
osity and  to  offset  the  lugubrious  side  of  the  oceanic  ennui.  And 
who  does  not  believe  himself  the  immortal,  the  one  favoured  by 
Fate  and  free  from  her  disasters  ? 

The  little  "  man-power  wagon,"  like  a  vane,  pointed  the  clirec- 

i 


2  SAKURAMBO 

tion  of  the  prevailing  sentiment.  In  its  very  name  it  seemed  so 
isolated  from  the  land  of  machinery,  where  man-power  had  been 
relegated  to  the  past,  where  man  had  been  almost  relegated  to  the 
past,  and  the  artisan  had  become  a  mere  additional  lever  to  the 
complicated  machine,  a  lever  of  flesh  among  the  levers  of  iron.  To 
live  among  a  people  where  arms  of  flesh  and  blood  overcame  the 
inertia  of  weight,  where  muscle,  not  steel,  triumphed  over  nature, 
where  your  human  steed  whisked  you  through  the  country  at  a 
good  round  trot,  and  always  found  time  to  look  after  the  personal 
comfort  of  his  freight,  and  was  always  ready  to  enter  into  conver- 
sation with  it  on  the  slightest  provocation,  whether  on  matters  of 
personal  interest  or  on  matters  local  to  the  place  and  occasion !  It 
sometimes  seems  to  me  that  our  boasted  equality  of  man  in  the 
West  is  a  very  fictitious  feeling.  Few  are  the  prophets  to  preach 
the  dignity  of  manual  labour,  and  we  undeniably  look  down  on 
occupations  that  imply  nothing  but  the  straining  of  the  muscles, 
so  much  "  horse-power  "  as  we  call  it,  and  of  less  value  than  steam 
and  electricity,  because  the  latter  is  more  economically  distributed. 
Although  the  lower  will  always  unite  in  dislike  and  jealousy  against 
the  higher,  there  is  a  greater  feeling  of  disdain  of  manual  labour 
shown  in  the  man  who  adds  so  many  yards  of  figures,  or  measures 
so  many  yards  of  cloth,  than  in  the  man  with  miles  of  railway  on 
his  back,  and  his  honour  and  reputation  upholding  the  interests 
of  thousands  of  lives  depending  on  his  brain  and  judgment  for 
their  daily  bread.  Our  ricksha  runner  or  kurumaya  has  no  feeling 
in  his  soul  that  his  employer  despises  him  for  his  daily  toil.  One 
man  is  born  to  silk  and  another  to  cotton.  One  man  is  a  shop- 
keeper, another  gets  his  living  from  a  bank,  and  another  from  the 
rice-fields.  He  may  envy  the,  to  his  eye,  easier  toil  of  the  other 
man,  but  not  its  nature.  He  may  envy  the  better  education  and 
training  that  has  enabled  the  other  man  to  obtain  his  higher  posi- 
tion, but  he  does  not  for  that  reason  despise  his  own  means  of 
living.  And  how  greatly  that  higher  knowledge  and  training  is 
valued  in  Japan !  Hundreds  of  young  men  and  boys  will  leave  bet- 
ter occupations,  in  a  social  sense,  to  take  up  so-called  menial  but  bet- 


FROM    MY    JAPANESE    GARDEN  2 

ter  paid  positions,  which  give  them  the  money  to  gain  training  and 
knowledge ;  who  go  out  as  cooks,  "  boys  "  or  servants,  gardeners, 
banto  or  under-clerks  in  the  service  of  foreigners,  a  course  a 
thousandfold  more  disliked  than  service  among  their  own  people, 
although  the  latter  affords  lower  pay,  or  no  pay,  simply  to  acquire 
a  foreign  language.  Xever  is  there  displayed  in  them  a  contempt 
for  their  occupation,  a  sense  of  degradation  in  pursuing  it,  simply 
because  a  feeling  of  humiliation  due  to  menial  service  does  not 
exist.  The  end  justifies  the  means  and  honours  the  form  of  toil. 
Although  service  in  foreign  countries  opens  their  eyes  as  to  the 
foreign  view-point  of  menial  labour,  I  doubt  if  there  are  any,  or 
but  few,  conversions  to  western  ideas  in  this  respect.  No  people 
hold  knowledge,  education,  and  all  it  brings,  in  higher  honour 
than  the  Japanese,  but  all  labour  has  its  honourable  side. 

I  remember  once,  in  travelling,  meeting  a  peculiarly  attractive 
character  in  one  of  our  numerous  self-made  men.  He  was  a 
Yankee  who  had  made  a  fortune  in  the  West,  and  had  returned  to 
his  old  home  in  Xew  England  to  enjoy  the  balance  of  life.  His 
interests  in  the  West  took  him  there  frequently,  and  they  were  his 
mission  on  the  occasion  on  which  I  met  him.  He  was  not  only 
a  bright  man,  but  well  informed  by  reading,  had  travelled  over  all 
the  United  States  and  Mexico  on  business,  and  on  most  subjects 
was  extremely  liberal  in  his  views.  Except  as  to  the  Oriental. 
On  that  point  his  brains  seemed  to  be  fairly  "  cut  bias,"  so  to  speak. 
To  him  the  Oriental  was  the  opium-smoking,  degraded  Canton 
coolie.  There  was  no  other.  The  idea  that  there  were  men  in 
the  East  fit  opponents  for  our  learned  divines,  economists,  and 
statesmen ;  that  there  were  thousands  of  wealthy  merchants  doing 
business  on  a  scale  as  large  as  our  own,  and  that  these  men  required 
for  their  business  a  capital,  not  only  of  money  but  of  education 
and  world-wide  experience,  quite  as  great  as  with  ourselves ;  that 
below  them  were  artisans  quite  as  skilful,  and  gaining  a  living  to 
their  own  content,  and  that  it  was  the  surplus,  the  unskilful,  of  this 
class  that  sought  other  countries — these  were  Munchausen  tales. 
He  told  me  how  on  a  recent  occasion  he  had  met  in  travelling  a 


4  SAKURAMBO 

Chinaman.     Actually,  the  audacious  heathen  travelled  in  a  Pull- 
man, whereas  he,  the  peer  of  kings,  travelled  in  the  common  car. 
Moreover,   the  said  heathen  paid  not  the  least   attention  to  his 
fellow-travellers,  generally  minded  his  own  business,  had  no  sense 
of  his  own  shortcomings  as  one  of  those  yellow-skinned  races  so 
recently  described  in  the  school  geographies  as  "  semi-civilized," 
or  of  his  audacity  in  regarding  himself  as  the  equal  of  the  other 
kings    (travelling    Pullman),    and    in    general    behaved   hjmself, 
according  to  my  now  excited  friend,  like  the  Chinese  gentleman 
that  he  was.     Now  the  fact  flashed  across  me,  that  such  gross 
ignorance  was  not  confined  to  my  Yankee  friend.     He  really  be- 
lieved every  word  he  said,  and  could  have  cited  articles  by  the 
hundred  and  editorials  by  the  score,  from  the  daily  papers,  sup- 
porting just  what  he  said.     And  there  came  to  mind  the  almost 
universal  tone  of  superiority  that  we  take  toward  these  eastern 
nations.     We  will  not  force  a  tariff  on  any  European  country,  or 
they  on  us,  because  we  lack  the  power  to  do  so ;  we  will  submit  our 
citizens  to  their  laws,  and  they  reciprocate,  because  we  must  submit 
or  go  away;    we  exclude  from  our  shores  whoever  and  whatever 
we  please,  and  it  is  our  right  to  do  so :    but  we  force  on  eastern 
nations  our  goods  on  terms  to  suit  ourselves,  and  without  regard 
to  the  distress  and  disorganization  it  may  cause  in  their  affairs; 
we  force  ourselves  on  them  on  terms  making  us  practically  irre- 
sponsible to  any  authority  among  them ;  we  murder  one  Chinaman, 
or  a  score  of  them,  and  it  is  the  outbreak  of  a  mob,  and  the  Gov- 
ernor of  the  offending  state  reports  "  parties  unknown."     A  China- 
man in  a  quarrel  kills  a  foreigner,  and  there  is  a  scramble  to  deter- 
mine the  nationality  of  the  murdered  man,  for  the  plunder  is  well 
worth  the  hurly-burly.     The   Governor   of  the   Chinese  state   is 
promptly  called  on  to  execute  somebody,  which  he  does — although 
probably  the  victim  is  in  no  way  connected  with  the  tragedy,  but 
has  been  marked  out  for  removal  on  other  grounds — and  to  pay 
an  indemnity,  which  he  does  far  less  willingly.     Western  ideas  of 
justice  hardly  seem  to  be  reached  in  such  cases,  however  good  the 
principle.     Lax  law  and  lax  justice  should  be  well  amerced.     The 


FROM    MY    JAPANESE    GARDEN  5 

duty,  however,  seems  to  be  reciprocal.  A  province  and  a  million 
people  is  high  pay  for  two  priests  killed  by  a  mob.  To  us  "  John  " 
is  still  "  the  heathen  Chinee,"  and  the  rest  of  us,  European  and 
American,  are  the  burly  ruffians  of  the  Sierras,  drawn  from  all 
quarters  of  the  globe,  armed  to  the  teeth,  and  really  a  good-natured 
lot — when  we  are  sober  and  don't  hang  the  wrong  man. 

Some  such  thoughts  came  into  my  head  as  Saburo  pushed  back 
the  heavy  wooden  outside  shutters  into  the  tobukuro  (alcove),  and 
threw  wide  open  the  little  Japanese  house  to  the  whole  of  out- 
doors. Saburo  is  a  little  dried-up  man,  over  forty  years  of  age, 
and  hence  toshiyori  (an  old  man)  to  the  reverent -younger  gen- 
eration ;  a  smooth  face,  the  top  of  his  head  bereft  of  hair,  the  red 
of  hard  winter  apples  in  his  sallow  face,  and  yet  a  plumpness 
therein  that  gives  him  the  delusive  appearance  of  "  childlike  and 
bland."  Saburo's  countrymen  had  been  wise  in  their  generation. 
Martial  valour  is  generally  an  inherent  quality  in  island  races,  and 
a  rigid  caste  system  together  with  a  punctilious  code  of  etiquette 
had  fostered  and  kept  alive  the  martial  spirit.  The  government 
had  crushed  out  public  disturbance  in  the  land,  and  encouraged 
and  substituted  therefor  private  war.  It  is  a  matter  of  history  how 
the  martial  spirit  was  there  in  1853  and  the  years  closely  follow- 
ing, but  the  means  and  the  skill  to  make  use  of  it  were  lacking. 
The  Japanese  were  dispersed  like  a  band  of  rioters  before  the 
modern  armed  and  drilled  sailors  and  marines  from  the  foreign 
warships.  Before  weapons  of  precision  and  modern  tactics  they 
were  helpless.  What  they  lacked  was  the  spirit  of  the  times.  For 
two  hundred  and  fifty  years  they  had  remained  in  the  sixteenth 
century  in  thought  and  in  practice,  but  the  developed  mind  was 
there.  We  hear  expressions  of  wonder  as  to  the  progress  made 
by  the  Japanese  within  the  last  fifty  years.  Just  why,  it  is  hard 
to  see.  In  the  case  of  a  race  of  savages  such  as  the  New  Zealand 
Maori,  one  can  indeed  wonder  at  seeing  the  ripest  product  of  civil- 
ization in  men  whose  professional  attainments  in  law,  medicine,  or 
politics,  stand  without  question,  and  whose  grandfathers  were  active 
advocates  of  "  benevolent  assimilation  "  of  their  fellow-men  bv  the 


6  SAKURAMBO 

fundamental  medium  of  the  soup-pot.  In  the  present  case  we  are 
dealing  with  a  change  of  material  direction  of  a  high  civilization. 
Is  there  any  intrinsic  mental  development  in  the  man  who  rides  at 
one  hundred  miles  an  hour  on  the  third-rail  system  and  the  man 
who  eighty  years  ago  rode  at  twelve  miles  an  hour  in  a  coach? 
It  seems  to  me  that  if  Caesar  or  Norman  William  returned  to  the 
scenes  of  their  former  activity,  we  would  find  that  it  would  not 
take  them  hundreds  of  years  to  grasp  the  science  of  modern  war. 
Given  supreme  power,  Caesar  could  have  written  the  Gallic  wars 
at  any  time  in  history,  and  at  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century 
and  early  in  the  nineteenth  century  he  did  so  write  them.  This 
country  of  Japan  had  learnt  its  lesson  well,  and  as  I  looked  across 
the  little  garden  to  Tokyo  Bay  and  the  Nokogiriyama  in  Boshu,  the 
line  of  forts  lying  across  the  bay  filled  the  middle  ground,  and  the 
naval  station  of  Yokosuka  lay  nestled  in  the  line  of  blue  hills 
separating  this  shut-in  basin  from  the  Sagami  Bay,  open  to  the 
beat  and  storms  of  the  ocean.  Strong  are  the  forts  and  elaborate 
the  precautions  taken  in  this  corner  of  the  Island  Empire,  for  here 
lies  the  entrance  to  its  capital  and  its  rich  Tokyo  plain,  extending 
for  miles  to  the  north  in  a  champaign  country  comparatively 
extensive  for  Japan,  one  of  the  few  vulnerable  points  of  the 
Empire. 

The  scene  is  anything  but  warlike,  this  fine  January  morning, 
although  the  land  is  in  the  throes  of  a  great  war.  Japan  is  a 
country  in  which  pretty  scenery,  charming  combinations  of  sea 
and  hill  without  savage  grandeur,  is  so  widely  distributed  that  a 
man  must  indeed  live  in  the  bottom  of  a  well  to  get  away  from 
beauty  of  some  kind.  This  Sagami  arm  is  the  beauty-spot  of 
Tokyo  Bay,  the  prettiest  view  of  it  being  perhaps  from  above 
Kanazawa,  looking  south.  From  the  heights  above  the  fishing 
village  of  Negishi  there  is  a  charming  picture  of  an  indented  jumble 
of  hills  and  sea,  which  in  summer  is  rendered  still  more  beautiful 
by  the  contrast  between  the  vivid  green  of  the  growing  rice  and  the 
darker  green  of  the  pines  and  fir-trees.  The  Japanese  pine 
(dmatsu)  fits  in  peculiarly  to  the  style  of  the  scenery.  Nature 


FROM    MY    JAPANESE    GARDEN  7 

seems  to  have  an  aesthetic  sense  of  propriety  in  throwing  together 
her  materials.  It  is  a  grotesque,  an  obsession.  Anywhere  else  it 
would  be  absolutely  condemned  as  a  tree.  Slender,  stumpy, 
knarled,  distorted,  it  seems  possessed  of  a  vegetable  locomotor 
ataxia.  A  western  gardener,  seeing  such  a  tree  in  a  plantation 
under  his  care,  would  root  it  off  the  surface  of  the  earth,  and  con- 
demn it,  not  to  firewood,  for  it  hardly  rises  to  such  dignity,  but  to 
chips  and  kindling  for  the  fairer  specimens  of  Nature's  woodcraft 
and  the  manor  chimney.  The  Japanese,  on  the  contrary,  cherish 
it.  They  build  elaborate  structures  to  prop  up  its  distorted 
branches,  grown  out  of  all  relation  to  the  trunk,  like  the  arms  of 
a  polypus.  They  plaster  up  its  wounds,  so  that  not  an  ounce  of 
precious  sap  will  be  lost.  They  revel  in  its  deviation  from  Nature's 
norm,  and  when  they  have  succeeded  in  bolstering  up  one  of  these 
degenerates  into  a  life  of  ten  generations,  they  build  a  circle  of 
tea-houses  around  it  and  flock  in  crowds  to  look  at  it.  As  to  how 
far  they  are  right  or  wrong  is  not  a  matter  of  importance.  The 
great  black  pines  of  the  Sierras,  the  beautiful  firs  and  hemlocks 
from  Maine  to  Oregon,  attract  the  eye  by  the  purity  of  their  curves 
and  lines,  and  Nature  duly  gives  them  their  centuries  of  life. 
They  are  strong  in  their  symmetry.  Such  life,  however,  as  the 
Japanese  pine  is  contra  Nature,  for  such  exaggerations  of  trees, 
by  the  very  laws  of  mechanics,  are  condemned  as  monsters.  The 
great  disparity  between  trunk  and  branches  would  have  killed  the 
tree  long  since,  splitting  the  trunk  from  top  to  bottom,  and  leaving 
it  an  incoherent  tangle  on  the  ground.  It  is  man  who  has  baffled 
Nature,  and  thwarted  her  remedial  legislation.  In  January,  how- 
ever, it  is  the  prevalence  of  this  pine  and  the  comparative  absence 
of  deciduous  trees  that  give  the  landscape  its  green  and  living 
appearance.  The  sign  of  winter  is  displayed  by  the  snowy  cone  of 
Fuji,  which,  by  a  sweep  of  a  small  segment  of  the  circle,  is  brought 
into  view,  and  continues  along  the  lofty  Oyama  range,  disappear- 
ing north  and  northwest  into  the  Tokyo  plain.  The  landscape 
will  not  materially  change  for  months.  The  rice  is  not  trans- 
planted until  June,  and  the  bare,  shining,  checkerboard  patches, 


8  SAKURAMBO 

fortunately  hidden  under  water,  even  weeks  later  will  only  show 
here  and  there  the  velvety  green  of  tiny  patches  of  seed  rice.  Yet 
winter  and  late  fall  are  in  many  respects  the  best  seasons  in  eastern 
Japan.  It  is  a  rainy  land  at  other  times.  It  is  safe  to  say  that 
from  March  to  November  the  days  of  the  month  on  which  rain  will 
fall,  more  or  less,  will  average  nine  in  number,  and  others  will  be 
so  threatening  as  to  thwart  outdoor  intentions.  In  winter,  how- 
ever, for  days  the  sun  shines,  not  with  the  steady  persistency  of 
southern  California,  but  enough  so  as  to  enable  man  to  be  fairly 
careless  as  to  his  future  outside  engagements.  Unfortunately,  it 
is  not  a  season  for  the  foreign  visitor.  The  summer  resorts  are 
rarely  opened  before  April,  and  the  Japanese  houses,  lacking  any 
heating  apparatus,  become  bitterly  cold  after  the  sun  goes  down. 
To  live  in  a  Japanese  house  in  winter  requires  a  concession  on  the 
part  of  the  foreigners  to  the  native  clothing,  which  is  far  warmer 
than  our  western  clothing.  It  is  a  common  sight  to  see  the  "  boys  " 
employed  in  foreign  hotels,  and  who  necessarily  wear  tights  and 
gaiters  in  European  style,  huddled  around  the  stove,  palpably  suf- 
fering from  cold.  The  same  "  boy  "  off  duty  and  squatting  on  the 
tatami  in  his  little  home  open  to  the  blasts  of  heaven,  wrapped  up 
in  three  or  four  layers  of  cotton-wadded  kimonos,  merely  finds  it 
necessary,  from  time  to  time,  to  stretch  his  frozen  fingers  over 
the  few  sticks  of  charcoal  in  the  hibachi  (brazier).  Granted  the 
art  of  sitting  on  one's  feet,  and  the  native  dress,  winter  days,  at 
least,  are  quite  tolerable  in  a  Japanese  house  from  December  to 
April. 

Sunrise  is  the  signal  for  the  day's  work  or  play  to  begin,  and 
sunrise  is  closely  followed  by  Saburo  and  his  operation  on  the 
shutters,  the  amado  or  rain-doors,  as  they  are  often  called,  in  dis- 
tinction from  the  shdji  or  light  wooden  frames  in  which  rice-paper 
replaces  the  glass  of  our  western  country,  the  only  means  by  which 
in  daytime  the  Japanese  house  is  shut  off  from  the  gaze  of  the 
outside  world.  These  to  are  about  the  only  thing  heavy  and 
ungraceful  in  a  structure  which  in  other  respects  is  lightness  and 
grace  itself  in  its  arrangements;  and  when  a  driving  rain  from 


FROM    MY    JAPANESE    GARDEN  9 

the  wrong  quarter  threatens  to  wash  the  rice-paper  out  of  the 
frames  of  .the  shoji,  then  even  in  daytime  the  to  have  to  be  pulled 
out  of  the  little  box-like  frame  into  which  they  fit  when  not  in  use, 
and  we  are  shut  in,  in  semi-darkness,  bodily  and  mental,  until  the 
wind  changes  and  gives  our  neighbours  a  dose,  or  the  rain  ceases, 
or,  more  often,  drops  into  a  gentle  drizzle.  Although  Japan  is  a 
rainy  country,  such  driving  storms  are  not  very  prevalent,  the 
steady  soak,  soak,  from  a  dripping  sky  being  more  the  rule;  but 
in  typhoon  weather,  sometimes  for  several  days  we  will  be  shut  in 
to  darkness  and  ourselves.  It  must  be  confessed  that  under  such 
circumstances  the  Japanese  house  does  not  shine ;  but  on  a  bright 
day,  and  in  the  warm  weather,  which  substantially  lasts  from  May 
until  November,  when  even  the  shoji  can  be  removed  temporarily 
from  their  grooves  and  the  whole  house  thrown  open  to  the  air, 
then  this  little  platform  raised  some  two  or  three  feet  from  the 
ground  is  an  ideal  home.  For  platform  it  really  is,  enclosed  only 
at  points  where  rigidity  requires  a  wall.  It  has  an  edging  of 
polished  wood  about  three  feet  wide,  always  kept  in  a  condition 
of  shine  like  a  pair  of  boots,  and  on  the  outer  edge  of  which  is 
cut  the  groove  in  which  slides  trie  to,  the  tobukuro  being  usually 
attached  to  or  sunk  in  the  solid  supporting  wall  section  at  a  corner 
of  the  structure.  On  the  inner  edge  of  the  polished  rim  a  double- 
grooved  frame  runs  around  the  whole  open  portion  of  the  house, 
sending  off  arms  at  intervals,  which  cut  the  flooring  into  squares  of 
size  appropriate  for  rooms.  This  frame,  raised  some  two  inches 
above  the  flooring,  carries  the  shoji  which  separate  the  rooms  of 
the  house  from  each  other  and  form  the  only  privacy,  limited  in 
character,  sought  in  a  Japanese  house.  All  is  levelled  off  inside 
the  frame  by  the  ti,tami  or  Japanese  matting,  thick,  soft,  and  heavy, 
bringing  the  whole  inside  of  the  house  to  one  level.  A  little  child 
can  and  does  readily  carry  off  the  light  shoji  f  and  ten  minutes  will 
convert  a  large  house  into  one  large  floor  space,  only  divided 
by  the  panels  crossing  the  ceiling  and  which  hold  the  upper  end  of 
the  shoji,  and  which  are  often  made  of  fretwork,  artificial  or 
natural,  the  latter  being  often  grotesque  and  always  pleasing  in 


10  SAKURAMBO 

outline.  Such  woodwork  is  highly  polished,  as  also  the  wooden 
pillars  supporting  the  roof,  often  left  in  their  original  irregularity. 
The  tatami  is  an  important  item  in  a  Japanese  house.  Fairly  good 
tatami  can  be  obtained  for  1.75  yen  a  mat,  every  mat  being  of  the 
standard  size,  3  by  6  feet,  and  the  house  being  built  to  fit  the 
mats,  not  the  reverse.  It  is  not  simply  as  a  matter  of  cleanliness 
that  it  is  necessary  to  take  off  boots  on  entering  a  Japanese  house. 
The  matting  is  the  padding,  the  mattress,  so  to  speak,  on  which 
the  Japanese  sits  and  lies,  and  must  be  fairly  soft.  Shoes  and  boots 
and  even  the  lightest  slippers,  if  they  have  heels,  cut  and  tear  or 
mark  it  very  quickly.  As  a  foot-rest  it  is  firmer,  more  springy, 
and  as  soft  as  our  best  carpets,  but  for  foreign  use  a  thick  rug  must 
be  spread  over  it,  and  the  supports  of  foreign  furniture  must  be 
attached  to  broad  flat  discs  to  distribute  the  weight.  Under  such 
conditions  there  is  no  combination  of  foreign  matting  and  carpets 
to  surpass  it.  Simply  as  a  platform,  the  living  foundation  of  the 
home  life,  the  tatami  puts  the  Japanese  house  in  the  front  rank. 

Japanese  rooms  are  conspicuous  by  the  absence  of  furniture; 
in  winter  a  hibachi  (brazier),  and  sometimes  a  zen  or  low  table 
about  a  foot  in  height,  of  lacquered  or  highly  polished  wood,  the 
legs  often  being  curved  and  carved  with  intricate  designs,  usually 
being  the  only  objects  in  sight.  Harmony  between  the  wall  tints, 
the  kakemono  hanging  in  the  tokonoma,  a  vase  containing  a  spray 
of  blossoms,  relieve  it  of  all  sense  of  emptiness.  The  screens 
dividing  room  from  room  are  often  one  of  the  rare  subjects  of 
adornment  in  the  room — always  simple  and  sketchy  in  design,  and 
subdued  in  colour ;  a  branch  of  plum  or  cherry  blossom,  a  shadowy 
flight  of  birds  across  one  corner  of  the  panel.  On  rare  occasions 
I  have  seen  the  faintest  suggestion  of  a  landscape  hidden  away  in 
one  corner.  It  does  one  good  to  compare  this  with  the  ancient 
framed  sampler  of  our  great-grandmothers,  "  Rock  of  Ages,"  or 
a  violent  chromo-lithograph  of  the  "  Battle  of  Bunker  Hill,"  or 
the  stuffed  trout  so  graphically  describing  the  commercial  room 
of  Pickwick's  day,  and  still  a  prominent  feature  of  the  furnishing 
of  an  average  country  inn  even  in  these  days.  The  little  finger- 


FROM    MY    JAPANESE    GARDEN  11 

catches  sunk  in  the  edge  of  the  screens  to  give  the  grip  necessary  to 
slide  them  back  are  also  a  means  of  adornment.  Sometimes  the 
size  of  a  large  buckle,  oftener  no  larger  than  an  English  penny, 
these  little  bronze  plates  are  adorned  with  all  sorts  and  kinds  of 
figures,  a  spray  of  blossoms,  a  grotesque,  or  a  daimio's  train  in 
which,  in  the  space  of  an  inch,  there  may  be  crowded  a  dozen 
tiny  figures  and  a  landscape  and  a  house.  I  remember  putting  up 
at  a  beautiful  little  inn  in  an  out-of-the-way  spot  in  Kyushu.  I  was 
the  only  guest,  and  the  only  one  likely  to  be  there  for  some  time. 
It  was  a  famous  shrine,  and  at  certain  seasons  only,  when  the  im- 
perial envoy  was  sent  with  presents  to  the  shrine,  was  there  any 
outside  interest  in  the  place.  Hence  the  whole  upper  floor  of  the 
inn  was  thrown  wide  open.  There  were  six  large  chambers  and  in 
each  chamber  there  were  sixteen  of  these  little  discs.  And  no  two 
of  the  whole  ninety-six  were  alike.  I  was  free  to  roam  at  will  over 
the  whole  space,  with  no  wretched  guide  at  hand  to  urge  one  on 
at  express  speed  from  object  to  object,  expediting  one  through  a 
tube,  so  to  speak,  in  order  to  get  at  the  next  batch  of  victims  and 
"  backsheesh."  The  Japanese  room  does  not  stand  strictly  by 
itself.  It  is  essentially  a  part  of  the  outside  landscape  and  is  so 
open  everywhere  to  outside  nature  that  it  really  forms  a  piece 
with  it.  The  little  section  of  garden  visible  from  it  is  part  of  the 
furnishing. 

Our  shutters  thrown  back,  the  flood  of  light  heralds  the 
entrance  of  Okamisan.  To  no  other  hands  are  to  be  entrusted  the 
plumage  which  convention  requires  the  master  of  the  house  to  weai 
in  addition  to  his  skin.  With  a  Japanese,  his  kimono  is  hung  on 
him  much  as  in  general  any  other  child  is  looked  after.  The  folds 
must  hang  gracefully,  and  all  the  accessories  are  to  be  so  close  to 
hand  that  he  does  not  have  the  exertion  of  reaching  for  them. 
In  fact  about  all  he  does  do  himself,  in  his  own  home,  is  to  perform 
the  necessary  early  ablutions.  This  is  done  at  a  little  stand  on  the 
edge  of  the  house,  looking  into  the  garden.  A  shining  brass  basin 
holds  the  water,  dipped  (not  by  him)  from  a  large  bucket,  in 
which  floats  a  primitive  wooden  dipper  made  by  cutting  a  hole  in 


12  SAKURAMBO 

washing  the  teeth,  and  on  the  stand  are  lying  a  number  of  frayed 
a  round  box,  much  like  the  old  fashioned  fig-boxes,  with  heavy 
bottom  and  very  thin  sides,  and  inserting  a  piece  of  bamboo  as 
handle.  Another  smaller  brass  basin  holds  some  boiled  water  for 
wood  tooth-brushes,  used  once  and  then  rejected,  and  a  cheap  and 
efficient  instrument.  The  only  miserable  feature  about  the  equip- 
ment is  the  towel,  for  its  artistic  features  do  not  make  up  for  its 
diminutive  size.  Where  two  nations  are  involved,  the  subsequent 
proceedings  require  concessions  on  both  sides,  for  few  foreigners 
will  allow  the  wife  to  act  the  valet,  and  yet  the  formalities  of  the 
native  code  are  to  be  conformed  to,  and  she  must  at  least  superin- 
tend the  operation.  The  care  of  the  man  is  her  peculiar  business, 
and  not  to  be  relegated  to  any  one  if  she  is  physically  able  to  per- 
form it.  It  is  the  custom  to  say  that  the  Japanese  wife  is  really 
a  sort  of  upper  servant,  that  her  wishes  have  no  weight  whatever, 
that  the  contract  is  all  freedom  of  action  and  direction  on  the  man's 
side  and  all  performance  on  the  \voman's  side.  It  seems  to  me 
that  such  is  not  the  case  in  affairs  of  the  household.  Social  life 
in  our  sense  of  the  word  is  so  lacking  among  the  Japanese  that 
outside  the  home  the  spheres  of  man  and  woman  are  widely  sepa- 
rated, and  outside  the  house  his  sphere  is  practically  unbounded 
and  unrestrained,  but  in  the  house  her  sphere  of  action  is  a  wide 
one,  and  the  man  acts  more  as  adviser  and  police  force  on  such 
rare  occasions  as  when  a  stronger  arm  is  needed  and  some  yakor 
mashii  ninsoku  (noisy  coolie)  is  to  be  dealt  with.  It  is  frankly 
to  be  confessed  that  much  of  this  freedom  is  due  to  the  care  taken 
not  to  disturb  his  masculine  eminence  with  the  trifling  matters  of 
the  house;  but  the  wife  has  the  silent  support  of  the  household  in  the 
fixed  routine  of  domestic  life,  and  if  the  man  violated  the  hundred 
and  one  little  conventions  established  by  years  of  usage,  he  would 
quickly  feel  that  a  sort  of  interdict  was  ruling  throughout  the 
establishment.  While  many  a  patient  wife  would  put  up  with 
freaks  of  the  wildest  kind,  the  rest  of  them  would  not.  The 
household  emphasizes  the  importance  of  certain  conventions  in  the 
domestic  life  that  define  the  privileges  of  a  woman  in  her  home, 


FROM    MY    JAPANESE    GARDEN  13 

the  right  to  be  the  domestic  vizier,  so  to  speak.  So  important  was 
the  right  of  position  of  the  wife  as  mistress  of  the  eastern  house- 
hold, that  in  cases  of  hopeless  sterility  the  child  of  a  concubine  was 
born  in  her  presence,  even  between  her  feet,  and  from  the  hour  of 
its  appearance  was  of  her  and  belonged  to  her,  and  the  real  mother 
had  no  place  or  portion  in  it.  In  the  case  of  adoption  of  the  grown- 
up child  of  a  concubine,  although  the  mother  had  not  only  borne  but 
brought  the  child  up,  all  the  ties  of  years  were  broken  between 
them  in  an  instant  by  a  legal  formality  and  the  child's  duty  passed 
to  a  stranger,  his  mother  becoming  only  a  servant  to  him,  and  to 
whom  he  must  regulate  his  conduct  as  such — a  hard  fate  for  the 
son,  an  atrocious  one  for  the  mother.  The  life  of  the  concubine 
was,  and  is  to-day,  in  its  domestic  relations,  a  hard  one,  after  the 
early  glamour  of  the  connection  has  passed  away,  but  the  position 
of  the  wife  has  always  been  very  different.  It  is  the  result  of  grave 
diplomatic  arrangements  between  two  families,  arrangements  with 
which  both  she  and  her  husband  have  had  but  little  to  say.  A 
rupture  of  the  relationship  involves  as  many  people  as  a  Kentucky 
feud,  in  the  old  days  and  among  the  upper  classes,  a  condition  of 
affairs  quite  likely  to  result.  To  divorce  a  wife  without  good 
cause  was  like  throwing  a  stone  in  a  pool :  the  disturbance  might 
spread  to  the  farthest  confines.  Divorce  was  easy,  but  its  burden 
was  not  light.  The  lot  of  the  Japanese  wife  is  not  a  happy  one  in 
our  western  sense,  but  she  has  rarely  any  abuse,  in  a  physical  sense 
of  the  word,  and  the  main  feature  is  neglect  from  a  man  whom 
perhaps  she  never  saw  before  she  married  him. 

In  those  early  days,  say  a  hundred  thousand  years  ago,  when 
man  and  the  cave-bear  were  engaged  in  mutual  pursuit,  it  perhaps 
was  the  custom  for  the  strong  arm  of  physical  force  to  have  its 
own  way  during  the  whole  twenty-four  hours.  Since  that  time, 
however,  the  real  restraints  placed  on  women  have  been  the  con- 
ventions raised  by  women  themselves.  The  genus  homo  is  a  gre- 
garious animal,  and  gregarious  animals  allow  no  departure  from  the 
norm.  If  the  Great  Teacher  had  addressed  women  when  He  said, 
"  Let  the  one  who  is  without  sin  cast  the  first  stone,"  Magdalen's 


14  SAKURAMBO 

fate  would  have  been  sealed  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye.  Man  has 
been  known  to  long  for  a  desert  island,  far  from  the  "  madding 
crowd,"  with  a  surplus  of  sun,  sleep,  and  cocoanuts.  Woman's 
ideals  point  to  the  biggest  place  with  the  biggest  shops  she  can  find, 
even  if  she  has  to  take  the  husband  with  the  biggest  purse  to  get 
there.  Only  a  genius  like  George  Eliot  could  have  her  hero  poor — 
and  happy.  And  her  genius  is  referred  to  the  masculine  type. 
Now  by  all  this  I  mean  to  offer  the  suggestion  that  a  good  part  of 
the  self-effacement  of  the  Japanese  woman  is  owing,  not  to  treat- 
ment by  men,  but  by  her  own  sex.  In  the  West  the  sex  have 
gained  a  preponderant  position  over  the  male  in  everything  but 
political  life  and  the  rougher  ways  of  getting  bread  and  butter. 
After  all,  life  is  a  battle  in  which  a  good  many  kicks  and  cuffs  have 
to  be  exchanged  of  very  necessity,  and  more  than  one  advanced 
woman's  voice  is  raised  against  the  intrusion,  too  far,  of  women 
into  this  struggle,  not  for  any  tender  consideration  of  the  enemy, 
man,  but  for  fear  that  in  becoming  a  competitor  woman  will  tender 
back  to  man  many  of  the  inestimable  privileges  her  physical  weak- 
ness has  extorted  from  his  passion.  Familiarity  breeds  contempt, 
and  they  recognize  that  it  is  the  unfamiliar  in  women  that  attracts 
men.  Many  women  are  by  the  exigencies  of  life  required  to  enter 
into  the  world's  struggle,  but  almost  universally  they  complain  of 
its  coarseness  and  its  buffets.  Most  of  them  expect  to  find  the  same 
consideration  in  business  that  they  meet  in  the  social  world ;  in  that 
world  where  life  itself  is  at  stake,  as  in  that  world  to  which  men 
withdraw  for  a  few  minutes  to  get  their  breath ;  the  time  of  armis- 
tice as  compared  with  the  time  of  battle.  There  is  plenty  of 
woman's  work  in  the  world,  quite  as  arduous  as  any  work  of  man ; 
but  her  very  physical  nature  has  separated  woman  in  some  respects 
from  the  continuous  toil  required  of  the  male,  and  has  subjected 
her  to  conditions  which  require  her  withdrawal  for  a  time  from  the 
world's  arena.  The  western  woman  has  won  her  freedom  from 
most  of  the  restraint  that  is  placed  on  the  idler  moments  of  life. 
She  can  take  a  mate  or  not  as  she  pleases,  accept  "  Eve's  curse  " 
or  not  as  she  pleases,  but  in  going  beyond  this  point  and  demanding 


FROM  MY  JAPANESE  GARDEN          15 

that  she  carry  her  privileges  on  to  the  field  of  battle,  it  is  to  be 
feared  that  she  is  running  against  a  law  of  nature;  the  struggle 
is  for  existence,  and  in  it  there  are  no  privileges  of  sex,  and  more 
kicks  than  "  ha'pence." 

The  world  does  not  go  backward.  During  the  early  years  in 
which  man  is  imbibing  ideas  as  ineradicable  as  language,  he  is  in 
the  hands  of  women.  It  is  woman  who  has  pretty  thoroughly 
subjugated  man,  not  man  who  has  subjugated  woman ;  and  the 
restrictions  placed  on  her  private  and  public  life  as  a  woman  are  re- 
strictions drawn  up  and  enforced  by  her  own  sex.  And  this  holds 
good  in  the  East  as  well  as  in  the  West.  With  a  difference  of 
degree,  for  a  seat  in  the  diet  or  on  the  bench  is  not  yet  within  the 
horizon  of  the  Japanese  woman.  In  other  respects  her  sphere 
seems  more  to  be  confined  by  a  harsher  religious  code,  and  a 
harsher  social  code  as  applied  by  her  own  sex,  than  falls  to  the  lot 
of  women  in  the  West.  To  our  Anglo-Saxon  freedom  she  in  no 
way  approximates,  but  the  comparison  is  perhaps  fairer  if  made 
with  the  Latin  countries  of  southern  Europe,  in  which  the  Church 
comes  so  strongly  to  the  support  of  the  social  code  there  in  practice. 
I  think  the  term  religion  could  be  applied  here  to  the  Confucian 
code  as  applied  to  women,  although  it  is  generally  described  as  a  set 
of  practical  moral  maxims,  as  ethical,  not  metaphysical  or  religious. 
Such  a  cold  set  of  formal  morality  as  pure  Confucianism  would 
hardly  appeal  to  women  unless  it  were  grafted,  as  it  has  been,  into 
the  religious  codes  of  the  East,  hiding  its  iron  hand  under  a  velvet 
glove.  Under  such  form  the  doctrine  of  unquestioning  obedience 
to  parents  and  husband  takes  on  a  sanctity  equivalent  to  any  funda- 
mental principle  of  salvation  as  laid  down  in  western  theologies. 
The  only  reward  that  woman  has  in  life  is  that  as  she  becomes  old 
she  becomes  the  object  of  such  reverence,  and  as  it  has  been  ground 
into  her  in  early  life,  so  she  grinds  it  into  the  younger  generation, 
left,  as  with  us,  to  her  charge  during  the  earlier  and  more  impres- 
sionable years.  Social  life  among  a  people  devoted  to  an  elaborate 
etiquette  is  no  trifle  in  itself,  and  now  to  a  thousand  and  one  little 
details  is  to  be  added  the  stamp  of  this  Confucian  maxim  of  obedi- 


16  SAKURAMBO 

ence.  And  this  sometimes  leads  to  startling  results,  as  looked  at 
by  western  standards,  as  in  the  sale  of  women  to  an  evil  life  to 
relieve  the  necessities  of  parents.  The  Japanese,  I  think,  are  often 
regarded  as  a  non-religious  race,  but  my  experience  has  been  much 
the  opposite.  They  take  their  religion  differently,  but  it  enters  at 
least  as  thoroughly  into  their  life  as  in  western  nations.  As  usual, 
the  women  are  more  religious  than  the  men.  The  men  would  not 
have  to  raise  a  finger  to  maintain  the  subordinate  position  of 
women.  The  old  Chinese  philosopher  has  done  it  all  for  them,  and 
the  Japanese  woman  presses  her  scourge  of  thorns  into  her  flesh 
rejoicing.  It  can  be  imagined  that  the  social  code,  the  restrictions 
women  have  based  on  such  a  religion,  are  none  of  the  lightest. 
Among  such  an  impersonal  people  as  the  Japanese,  a  people  that 
hardly  know7  the  use  of  the  personal  pronoun  except  in  the  vaguest 
kind  of  way,  there  are  not  the  individual  aspirations  to  rebel  against 
such  a  system.  Such  aspirations,  if  they  dared  to  raise  their  head, 
would  quickly  be  crushed  out  by  an  intolerant  public  opinion  so 
universal  as  to  be  annihilating.  The  irregularity  that  is  so  fostered 
in  nature  by  the  Japanese  is  not  tolerated  in  their  social  code. 
Self-sacrifice  is  the  fundamental  principle  on  which  woman's  relig- 
ion rests  in  Japan.  Without  it  there  is  no  salvation  in  this  world 
or  the  next.  It  is  works  not  faith  that  count,  and  lack  of  duty  to 
parents  or  overlord  is  indeed  rewarded  with  the  hottest  hell-fire  of 
a  very  ingeniously  imagined  hell.  Unnatural  conduct  to  parents  is 
equivalent  to  sacrilege  in  the  West. 

I  don't  think  that  any  of  this  is  in  O  Kami  San's  head  as  we 
hear  the  last  rumble  of  the  to  and  the  flap-flapping  of  the  little 
Japanese  whisks  beating  walls,  tatami,  furniture,  and  everything 
within  reasonable  reach  of  the  neya's  (maid-servant's)  arm.  This 
flapping  is  the  earliest  sign  of  domestic  life  in  the  Japanese  house. 
I  do  not  know  that  the  little  broom  is  peculiarly  effective.  Jap- 
anese houses  look,  and  on  the  surface  are,  peculiarly  clean.  I  have 
my  doubts,  however,  and  I  think  with  some  basis  of  fact.  At 
times  in  the  summer  season,  when  there  is  a  little  scare  anticipated 
or  actually  threatened  of  cholera  or  plague,  there  is  a  general  house- 


FROM    MY    JAPANESE    GARDEN  17 

cleaning  ordered  by  the  police,  who,  moreover,  act  as  general  over- 
seers, being  reserved,  in  the  ordinary  trend  of  Japanese  events  for 
the  arduous  task  of  looking  on,  taking  presumably  keen  pleasure  in 
seeing  others  work.  Below  the  hill,  in  the  town  itself,  is  a  quarter 
largely  devoted  to  tiny  houses  many  of  them  not  covering  more 
than  half  a  dozen  mats  in  total  floor-space.  Always  wide  open 
in  summer  weather  from  end  to  end,  there  is  not  a  sign  of  dirt  or 
litter;  and  yet  on  such  cleaning  occasions,  when  tatami  and  even 
flooring  are  taken  up,  and  every  crevice  is  thoroughly  cleaned  and 
scrubbed  under  vigilant  eyes,  the  amount  of  rubbish — two  or  three 
barrels  to  a  house — is  extraordinary.  Where  it  comes  from,  it  is 
hard  to  say,  but  it  looks  as  if  the  little  broom  drove  everything  into 
the  crevices,  or  dispersed  the  finer  dust  in  the  air,  to  settle  back 
again  in  its  old  place  as  soon  as  the  maid's  back  was  turned. 
However  that  may  be,  the  Japanese  housewife  has  great  confidence 
in  it,  and  the  occasions  of  a  general  turnout  are  comparatively  rare 
as  compared  with  the  West,  where  open  windows,  furniture  massed 
in  a  corner,  and  a  general  scrubbing  process  on  a  large  scale  make 
an  eternal  rotation  through  the  house  from  room  to  room,  like  a 
domestic  wandering  in  the  wilderness.  Part  of  this  debris  that  I 
speak  of  undoubtedly  belongs  to  the  outside  of  the  house,  for  the 
Japanese,  if  finicky  about  their  immediate  surroundings,  are  ex- 
tremely indifferent  to  anything  beyond  their  noses,  and  by  no 
means  pay  the  attention  to  things  beyond  and  under  the  house  line 
that  they  do  to  matters  within  it.  Something  extremely  offensive 
may  arouse  them  to  a  point  beyond  the  expression  kusai  (smelly), 
but  it  has  to  be  something  pretty  strong  at  that.  However,  in 
cholera  season  they  do  really  get  to  work,  and  when  on  several 
occasions  there  has  been  reason  to  fear  an  epidemic,  such  an  appar- 
ently superficial  method  as  water  justifies  itself  by  the  excellent 
results.  This  cleaning  is  not  carried  out  blindly,  under  orders. 
A  preliminary  is  the  distribution  of  a  notice  setting  out  the  disease, 
the  hygiene  to  be  adopted,  with  all  the  whys  and  wherefores  clearly 
explained,  and  the  remedial  measures  to  be  adopted.  It  is  the 


18  SAKURAMBO 

unknown  that  frightens,  and  this  house  to  house  distribution  of 
these  lucid  little  notices  obviates  a  great  deal  of  panic. 

Meanwhile,  our  flapping  cannot  last  forever,  and  is  really  the 
agreeable  preliminary  to  breakfast.  Japanese  food  has  been  most 
thoroughly  abused.  Even  long-resident  foreigners  abuse  it  (which 
is  natural),  and  declare  it  unsatisfying  (which  is  not  wholly 
accurate) .  All  food  is  a  matter  of  custom  and  climate,  and  often 
climate  can  overcome  custom,  as  witness  the  evidence  of  men  who 
have  spent  winters  in  the  North  living  exclusively  on  seal  blubber 
and  walrus  steak.  In  fact,  the  balance  is  singularly  good  between 
carbon  and  nitrogen,  but  it  is  prepared  in  a  way  foreign  to  western 
usage.  There  is  no  common  point  between  eastern  and  western 
cooking.  The  westerner  travelling  in  the  interior  of  the  country, 
living  at  Japanese  inns  and  on  Japanese  food,  gets  quite  enough 
to  eat.  The  food  is  not  tasteless — in  fact,  is  often  unpleasantly  the 
reverse;  but  it  is  not  to  his  taste.  In  fact  there  is  no  greater  tyrant 
than  the  stomach  even  in  health.  It  has  all  the  prejudice  of  patriot- 
ism in  its  narrowest  sense,  and  man  will  agree  sooner  with  his 
foreign  neighbour's  politics  than  with  his  cooking.  Hence, 
although  fish  are  a  common  article  of  diet  in  Japan,  many  varieties  of 
them  as  distinct  to  the  Japanese  palate  as  beef  and  pork,  and  dished 
up  in  as  many  different  ways,  to  the  westerner  they  are  rarely  more 
than  insipid,  sometimes  worse.  Hence  such  forms  of  cooking  as 
at  first  please  grow  wearisome  in  a  short  time  by  repetition.  The 
native  finds  it  hard  to  understand  why  the  foreigner  should  travel 
through  the  country  districts  with  a  commissariat  as  great  as  if  the 
land  was  a  Sahara.  In  truth,  the  Japanese  are  more  adaptable, 
and  live  year  in  and  year  out  in  foreign  countries  and  on  foreign 
food,  to  an  extent  the  westerner  would  find  almost  impossible  to 
become  accustomed  to  in  the  reverse  case.  This  is  no  compliment 
to  western  food,  for  the  Japanese  prefer  their  own  way  of  cooking, 
and  are  only  too  glad  to  get  back  to  it.  Apparently,  they  find  much 
in  western  food  that  is  pleasing  to  the  palate,  but  they  readily  get 
tired  just  as  in  the  case  of  the  European.  However,  superiority, 
better  adaptability,  in  a  broad  sense,  has  nothing  to  do  with  this 


FROM    MY    JAPANESE    GARDEN  19 

question.  They  can  and  do  work  as  hard  and  as  long"  on  their 
diet  as  the  European  does  on  his,  and  probably  better  than  they 
themselves  would  on  the  bread  and  beer  or  wine  of  the  European. 
In  fact,  the  pure  push  and  pull  labour  of  the  East  certainly  is 
far  in  excess  of  anything-  we  have  in  western  countries ;  and  it  is 
to  be  doubted  that  if  an  average  were  taken  of  man-labour  ex- 
pressed in  terms  of  horse-power,  the  western  average  would  cut 
a  very  respectable  figure  beside  the  eastern  average.  There  would 
be  found  more  men  in  the  West  able  to  carry  very  heavy  burdens 
far  in  excess  of  eastern  capacity,  but  the  standard  man,  forming 
the  great  middle  section,  and  far  exceeding  in  numbers  the  others, 
would  be  found  in  the  East.  As  to  the  other  phase  of  this  subject 
— the  form  of  preparation — the  Japanese  with  the  same  material 
prefer  their  own  method  of  putting  it  together.  They  are  very 
fond  of  sweets  (kwashi).  They  put  sugar  into  many  things  in 
connection  with  which  the  foreign  mind  would  fly  at  once  to  vine- 
gar and  pepper,  or  at  least  to  salt.  It  is  a  favourite  way  of  pre- 
paring fish.  They  do  not  use  the  sugar  alone  but  add  flour  to  it. 
These  are  to  them  the  palatable  forms.  They  are  excellent  cooks, 
and  can  simulate  the  skill  if  not  the  originality  of  a  French  cookr 
rather  astonishing  when  the  question  of  condiments  and  sauces  is 
so  foreign  to  their  own  taste.  All  the  attractive  forms  of  western 
pastry  are  within  the  range  of  the  Japanese  kitchen,  and  yet  they 
are  not  used.  It  is  not  a  question  of  milk,  for  at  this  date  the 
milkman's  cart  is  a  common  sight  in  all  Japanese  cities,  although 
the  country  districts  still  refrain  from  its  use. 

It  is  worth  looking  into  the  place  where  this  food  is  being 
prepared  for  a  dozen  people — not  a  difficult  task.  Instruments  of 
cooking  in  western  style,  and  totally  mysterious  anyhow  to  the 
ignorant  male.  But  it  is  the  dimensions  of  the  place  that  strike  the 
eye ;  6  by  4  feet  will  cover  it  amply.  A  couple  of  stoves  much  in 
size  and  shape  akin  to  an  assayer  s  furnace  for  his  crucibles :  one 
is  devoted  to  the  rice;  on  the  other,  various  adjuncts  take  their 
turn,  and  in  some  mysterious  way  are  kept  hot.  A  small  stand 
or  chadansn  holds  the  different  ingredients  necessary  to  savour  the 


20  SAKURAMBO 

food.  The  sakanayasan  (fishmonger)  does  the  cleaning  and 
preparation  of  the  fish.  A  low  stand  answers  for  any  rolling  or 
cutting  required  in  situ,  and  the  centre  of  the  kitchen  itself  is  sunk 
a  foot  or  eighteen  inches  to  a  level  with  the  outside  ground,  the 
iriguchi  or  entrance  forming  one  side  of  the  room  and  the  general 
means  of  approach  for  the  tradesmen  connected  with  that  depart- 
ment of  the  establishment.  Certainly  not  an  elaborate  outfit. 
These  tradesmen  are  an  interesting  feature  in  themselves.  They 
are  daily  or  occasional  visitors  according  to  the  aristocracy  of  their 
pursuits.  The  rice  man  only  appears  at  stated  intervals ;  rice  being 
the  daily  bread  of  the  household,  it  is  bought  in  bulk,  a  hundred 
pounds  or  more  at  a  time.  There  is  great  difference  in  rice, 
and  closely  does  6  Kami  San  inspect  the  mass  as  to  the  quality  of 
the  rice  itself  and  the  care  which  has  been  taken  in  cleaning  it. 
The  purity  of  the  sample  is  a  matter  of  no  little  importance,  for 
it  is  eaten  boiled  and  without  butter  or  condiments,  a  form  which 
grows  very  attractive,  and  in  a  short  time  will  be  found  preferable 
to  more  elaborate  methods  of  preparation.  One  would  never  sus- 
pect rice  of  so  much  individuality  until  he  tries  it.  Rice  is  a  staple 
product,  and  its  fluctuations  in  price  a  matter  of  such  general  public 
knowledge  that  there  is  no  bargaining  involved  in  this  item  of 
domestic  supply.  Very  different  is  the  case  with  Obasan  from  the 
country,  who  appears  at  times  with  vegetables  and  flowers.  Price 
and  freshness  have  both  to  be  well  looked  to,  for,  all  bows  and 
smiles,  she  is  keen  as  a  needle  underneath,  and  the  quarter  of  a 
cent  will  be  a  great  diplomatic  victory  to  her.  In  addition,  there 
is  the  boy  from  the  corner  store,  so  here  there  is  competition.  The 
corner  store  is  a  counterpart  of  the  same  in  western  life.  The 
merchant  sits  on  his  mats  and  in  the  centre,  his  vegetables  being 
distributed  around  the  edge  or  in  front.  He  is  behind  his  counter 
as  much  as  his  western  confrere.  At  stated  times  the  boy  goes  out 
with  orders,  or  to  take  orders  at  customers'  houses.  His  stock  is 
much  the  same  as  in  the  West,  with  some  purely  eastern  products 
thrown  in  and  some  purely  western  products  omitted.  He  sends 
out  a  book  which  is  settled  at  stated  intervals,  or  paid  on  the  spot, 


FROM    MY    JAPANESE    GARDEN  21 

duly  stamped  and  receipted.  Across  the  street  is  the  baker,  for  the 
Japanese  store  not  being  adapted  for  baking,  the  baker  has  a  more 
complete  monopoly,  such  as  it  is,  of  such  products  than  in  the  West, 
although  their  use  is  anything  but  general,  and  away  from  the  large 
towns  he  is  a  curiosity. 

The  milkman  is  another  feature  of  Japanese  city  life.  Deliv- 
ery is  usually  made  in  bottles  and  twice  a  day,  and  dairies  are  to  be 
found  sprinkled  all  over  the  immediate  suburbs.  Arable  land  is 
too  valuable  in  Japan  to  be  wasted  in  pasture,  therefore  they  have 
no  pasture  land  worth  speaking  of,  and  the  cows  attached  to  these 
dairies  seem  to  lead  a  melancholy  life  in  bare  and  confined 
enclosures.  The  milk,  however,  is  good,  but  should  invariably  be 
boiled  or  sterilized  before  using,  as  in  fact  should  be  done  with 
any  milk;  in  the  East,  however,  chances  cannot  be  taken  that  in 
many  parts  of  the  West  would  hardly  be  considered  chances. 
Modern  artificial  fertilization  is  a  purely  western  growth.  For 
centuries  the  eastern  man  has  followed  nature,  and  night-soil  has 
been  the  main,  almost  the  only,  means  of  restoring  its  strength  to 
the  hard-worked  ground.  Where  every  available  inch  of  ground 
is  required  to  feed  the  people,  land  cannot  be  allowed  to  lie  fallow. 
Such  a  method  of  fertilization,  however,  as  night-soil  carries  its 
plain  dangers  with  it.  Between  irrigation  and  such  fertilization 
every  running  stream  in  the  low  inhabited  land  is  a  shining  poten- 
tial poison.  Man  without  knowing  anything  of  germ  theories  has 
found  this  out.  He  does  not  drink  cold  water.  He  drinks  tea 
or  boiled  water.  Provided  the  well  has  not  reached  the  point  at 
which  the  water  is  offensive  to  Japanese  taste,  it  is  always  available. 
The  only  thing  to  cause  its  disuse  is  for  it  to  go  dry,  and  that  is 
not  very  likely  in  a  rainy  island  country.  West  and  East  have 
solved  the  sanitary  problem  differently,  and  the  East  has  solved 
it  permanently — solved  it,  for  with  their  overcrowded  population 
and  agricultural  needs  of  irrigation,  the  liberal  methods  of  Europe 
and  America  are  out  of  the  question ;  as  much  out  of  the  question 
for  the  large  cities  as  for  the  continuous  stretch  of  country  popu- 
lation spread  over  the  surface  of  the  land.  They  have  not  the 


2%  SAKURAMBO 

ground  to  devote  to  forming  large  watersheds  to  supply  pure  water 
to  large  communities,  and  they  have  not  the  water  to  furnish  both 
for  general  use  and  for  irrigation  purposes.  If  the  large  com- 
munities can  avoid  disease  by  drinking  tea,  why  should  they  go 
to  the  large  expense  of  establishing  filters  which  in  themselves  take 
up  tracts  of  ground  better  used  for  growing  rice?  So  argues  the 
Oriental,  and  goes  on  drinking  tea;  and  on  the  whole,  with  a 
soupgon  of  cleanliness  in  the  community,  getting  along  pretty  well. 
In  Japan,  where  there  is  not  religious  prejudice  to  thwart  sanitary 
ideas  as  to  cleansing  and  fumigation,  they  manage  without  the  im- 
provements necessary  to  secure  an  ideally  pure  water  supply,  and 
which  involve  vast  cost  even  in  a  country  where  the  available  supply 
from  the  mountains  is  so  close  at  hand  and  so  abundant.  East  and 
West  have  practically  attained  the  same  end  by  different  means. 
The  West  runs  its  refuse  directly  into  the  streams,  and  then  filters  it 
out  again  to  render  the  water  fit  to  drink.  The  East  runs  its  refuse 
indirectly  into  the  streams  by  the  irrigation  canals,  and  then  boils 
the  water  to  make  it  fit  to  drink.  On  the  whole,  in  the  end  the 
western  method  i"s  perhaps  the  more  dangerous.  The  population  is 
not  getting  the  training  it  must  come  to  in  the  end.  We  are  pam- 
pering ourselves,  although  we  frankly  confess,  in  the  case  of  our 
cities  lying  in  low  land,  far  from  any  pure  source  of  supply,  that 
something  must  be  clone.  We  filter  the  water  and  reduce  our  sick- 
rate,  which  a  freshet  or  a  defective  filter  sends  cheerfully  bounding 
upward.  Thousands  of  people  live  on  and  by  the  river  at  Canton, 
drinking  se\vage,  and  managing  to  hold  their  own.  The  westerner 
living  in  the  East  must  take  the  native  as  example.  And  more: 
no  fresh,  crisp  salads — his  greens  must  be  boiled ;  no  fresh, 
delicate-flavored  ground-fruits.  No  finer  strawberries  are  grown 
than  are  grown  in  the  East.  Many  westerners  eat  and  do  not  die ; 
as  ditto  the  native.  And  of  those  who  do  eat,  some  die  who  would 
have  died  in  the  course  of  nature  anyhow. 

The  most  important,  however,  of  our  day's  visitors  in  the  mer- 
cantile line  is  the  sakanayasan  or  fishmonger.  About  eleven 
o'clock  this  main  feature  of  the  supply,  the  piece  dc  resistance, 


FROM    MY    JAPANESE    GARDEN  23 

makes  his  appearance  and  his  apologies.  The  fish  are  very  dear 
on  account  of  the  scarcity  of  the  fish,  or  the  obstinacy  of  the  fisher- 
men, bad  weather  preventing  their  going  out,  or  laziness,  or  a 
matsuri,  or  a  dozen  and  one  other  reasons.  O  Kami  San  is  quite 
up  to  all  these  statistics.  She  knows  what  fish  are  in  season  and 
what  out  of  season;  the  date  and  extent  of  every  inatsuri  is  at  her 
fingers'  ends ;  and  if  the  fishermen  have  been  lazy,  or  obstinate,  or 
deterred  by  bad  weather,  then  the  long  strip  of  fishing-boats  com- 
ing in  from  Hanawa  Point  or  from  the  Negishi  side  must  have 
gone  out  for  their  own  amusement.  These  are  the  preliminary 
features  of  the  argument,  and,  once  having  impressed  the  extent 
of  her  knowledge,  the  bargaining  gets  down  to  the  more  legitimate 
feature  of  prices  as  ruling  among  the  various  kinds  of  fish.  As 
fish  take  the  place  of  meat  with  the  Japanese,  this  question  of 
variety  is  far  more  important  in  the  bill  of  fare  than  with  us — 
variety  not  only  in  name  but  in  quality.  Some  fish,  such  as 
magiiro  and  same,  have  a  distinctly  meaty  flavour,  a  stronger, 
harsher  flavour;  others  are  softer  in  texture  and  more  delicate, 
and  again  others  distinctly  of  the  trifling  nature  of  an  entree,  such 
as  the  ebodai  or  the  different  forms  of  ai  or  trout.  In  fact, 
whether  due  to  cooking  or  skilful  alternation — a  sort  of  rotation  of 
crops,  so  to  speak — a  Japanese  meal  made  up  of  fish  and  rice  can 
present  contrasts  between  the  courses,  not  so  striking  as  with  our 
cooking,  but  ample  enough  to  give  variety.  Some  of  these  fish 
of  daily  household  use  are  particularly  palatable.  The  tar  runs 
through  a  whole  gamut  of  the  "  breams,"  from  the  highly  appreci- 
ated akadai  or  red  tai  to  the  succulent  little  ebodai.  Mutsu  is  a 
fish  coming  with  the  cold  weather  and  lasting  until  late  spring.  In 
some  respects  it  has  a  distinct  flavour  of  the  shad,  and  the  flesh 
is  very  tender  and  delicate,  albeit  with  very  few  bones  to  distract 
the  attention  from  the  flavour.  Bora  is  somewhat  firmer  in  tex- 
ture, but  with  delicate  flavour;  and  maguro,  which  is  a  large  fish, 
cuts  up  into  steak  like  meat.  The  kurodai  and  shirame  are  fish 
of  almost  daily  appearance  with  the  fishmonger's  stock,  but  are 
somewhat  insipid.  All  the  larger  fish  furnish  roe  and  sash i mi 


24  SAKURAMBO 

or  sliced  raw  fish.  This  is  preferably  taken  from  the  live  fish,  the 
operator  using  skill  to  avoid  all  vital  parts,  and  cutting  as  needed 
from  the  fish.  The  shirame  gives  a  sashimi  very  delicate  and 
white,  and  the  maguro  a  firm,  red  sashimi.  The  sakanayasan 
cleans  all  fish,  and  if  sashimi  is  ordered,  prepares  it,  or  brings  it 
prepared.  The  first  is  preferable  on  the  same  principle  that, 
although  painful,  it  is  important  to  see  the  lobster  go  kicking  and 
objecting  into  the  pot.  In  fact,  the  more  he  kicks  the  better  we 
are  pleased,  gastronomically,  on  sanitary  grounds,  and  the  less 
likely  is  he  to  kick  after  eating,  or  to  manufacture  or  recall  for  us 
a  line  of  ancestors.  A  little  pyramid  of  horse-radish  (uwsabi),  a 
larger  one  of  shredded  daikon  or  Japanese  radish,  and  of  kobu, 
a  succulent  green,  with  a  sprig  of  sanza  (herb)  is  symmetrically 
arranged  with  the  sashimi  laid  in  two  parallel  lines  on  broad  hi- 
no-ki  leaves,  the  whole  forming  a  very  cool  and  pleasing  dish. 
As  with  everything  eatable,  the  sashimi  should  be  carefully  kept  in 
a  fly-proof  safe,  and  this  also  is  an  important  reason  why  it  should 
be  cut  from  the  living  fish.  In  fact,  in  the  fly  season  it  is  better 
to  avoid  its  use  altogether,  as  also  the  use  of  all  kinds  of  uncooked 
food.  It  can  be  seen  now  that  the  sakanayasan' s  duties  do  not  con- 
sist simply  in  exchanging  his  wares  for  cash.  The  bargaining 
over,  he  becomes  for  a  few  minutes  a  member  of  the  household, 
working  away  with  his  hands  and  chattering  with  his  tongue,  for 
his  acquaintance  is  wide-spread  in  the  neighbourhood,  and  his 
opportunities  of  conversation  extensive.  Personal  character 
counts  for  much  with  the  sakanayasan,  and  if  otonashii,  a  quiet  and 
good-tempered  animal,  his  daily  visit  is  a  feature  affording  food 
both  mental  and  physical.  His  business  over,  he  balances  his 
tubs  on  his  shoulders  and  makes  off,  lighter  in  burden  and  with 
items  more  or  less  substantial  added  to  his  chronique  scandaleuse. 
Other  requirements  of  Japanese  household  life  go  on  much  as  in 
our  western  homes.  The  gomiyasan  or  garbage-collector  is  a 
municipal  feature.  At  New  Year's  and  the  Bon  Matsuri  it  is  cus- 
tomary to  give  him  a  little  present.  Another  cleans  out  the  wells 
and  cesspools  on  the  premises.  He  has  a  district  for  his  private 


FROM    MY    JAPANESE    GARDEN  25 

round,  and  collects  five  to  fifty  cents  a  month  for  his  labour.  Ten 
to  twenty  cents  a  month  covers  the  expense  for  quite  an  extensive 
Japanese  house.  In  the  ex-treaty  ports,  gas  and  water  attach- 
ments are  looked  after  by  the  company's  employes,  just  as  with 
us,  their  duties  ceasing  with  the  property  of  the  company,  and 
elsewhere  a  private  plumber  being  a  necessity  if  things  go  wrong 
in  the  house  itself.  A  number  of  itinerants  drop  in  during  the 
day :  countrymen  with  flowers  or  vegetables,  the  hokiyasan  or 
broom  man — a  Japanese  broom  being  cheap  and  evanescent — beg- 
gars, mendicant  priests  sent  out  by  their  fraternities,  charitable 
committees  seeking  to  pension  deserving  paupers  or  publish  unde- 
serving poems,  to  send  blankets  "  to  the  front  "  or  sell  flags  for 
the  same  good  purpose,  and  at  times  a  policeman  to  keep  tab  on 
the  population  and  the  safety  of  Dai  Nippon. 

Now,  in  re  breakfast,  I  will  frankly  confess  that  this  particu- 
lar breakfast  is  anything  but  Japanese.  Accustomed  as  one  can 
get  to  Japanese  food,  a  Japanese  breakfast  is  too  much  like  dinner 
to  answer  for  that  meal.  It  seems  to  me  that  the  beauty  of  western 
home  economy  lies  in  the  balance  of  the  two  meals  a  day — for  the 
third  meal,  whether  coffee  and  roll  on  rising  or  milk  and  roll  for 
luncheon,  should  be  more  name  than  substance.  The  Scotch- 
American  breakfast  and  the  continental  table  d'hote  perhaps  form 
the  ideal  combination.  Americans  get  their  dyspepsias  not  from 
overeating  but  from  hasty  eating,  and  as  a  nation  are  anything  but 
gouty.  And  the  Scotch,  in  literature  anyhow,  make  but  little  com- 
plaint of  that  disease.  The  English,  however,  make  a  substantial 
luncheon,  a  heavy  dinner,  and  a  good  supper,  jamming  three  fairly 
complete  meals  into  a  rapid  succession  of  feeding  beginning  at  noon 
and  lasting  until  midnight.  And  they  are  notoriously  gouty. 
The  continental  European  can  hardly  point  the  finger  at  them, 
for  he  holds  his  due  proportion  of  the  victims  at  the  different  Bads, 
and  walks  his  little  round  and  nibbles  his  little  biscuit,  sips  and 
drinks  nauseating  waters,  and  generally  abandons  his  vin  rouge 
and  vin  mousseu.v  for  sackcloth  and  ashes  for  a  limited  season. 
And  he  too  jams  two  table  d'hotes  and  a  supper  into  the  same 


26  SAKURAMBO 

limited  time.  The  Japanese  would  probably  hold  up  their  end  also 
at  Carlsbad  and  Homburg,  if  they  were  within  reaching  distance 
of  it,  but  for  different  reasons — for  dyspepsia,  not  gout.  As  to  a 
coolie  you  can  see  his  rice  take  up  its  journey  through  his  oeso- 
phagus practically  unmasticated  in  the  original  ball,  a  shape  of 
which  he  is  particularly  fond.  The  man  who  ate  nineteen  mince- 
pies  in  nineteen  minutes  could  easily  be  matched  at  any  ricksha 
stand,  provided  the  food  was  to  the  coolie's  taste,  and  the  Japanese 
would  not  know  he  had  entered  into  any  competition.  To  him  it 
would  be  the  normal  method  of  procedure. 

I  think  these  peculiarities  of  nations  are  shown  by  a  very 
every-day  piece  of  evidence  in  the  newspapers — the  patent  medicine 
advertisements.  Once  when  travelling  in  the  southern  United 
States,  being  impressed  by  the  number  of  large,  sluggish  rivers 
it  was  necessary  to  cross,  and  the  sallow  appearance  of  the  inhabi- 
tants, I  made  inquiry  as  to  whether  malaria  was  not  common  in  the 
district.  The  hotel-clerk  waved  his  hand :  "  Never  heard  of  it, 
sir."  In  fact,  he  intimated  a  little  jaundice,  perhaps,  on  my  part, 
making  me  see  yellow,  and  transfixed  me  with  his  diamond  and 
asphyxiated  me  with  his  suavity.  Still  I  had  misgivings,  and, 
strange  to  say,  the  drug-stores  seemed  to  have  little  stock  but 'qui- 
nine and  "  Antishake."  The  rest  was  fly-blown.  That  clerk  told 
a  tale  that  night  to  the  assembled  "  drummers,"  how  he  preferred 
town  to  the  country  because  he  had  time  to  shave  between  chills, 
and  did  not  cut  himself.  They  had  not  only  chills  but  a  liar  or  two 
in  Arkansas.  Now  the  Japanese  prevalent  advertisements  largely 
recall  American  advertisements  :  very  thin  men  become  abnormally 
fat  and  shaking  hands  with  each  other  over  the  change,  pills  and 
boluses  for  the  stomach,  and  "  detonators  "  to- jar  sluggish  livers — 
and,  right  under  one's  eyes,  at  any  Japanese  hotel,  the  cause  of  it 
all.  The  tray  goes  into  the  apartment  stored  with  little  dishes  and 
full  contents.  In  a  trice  nesan  appears  again,  all  the  dishes  a 
howling  wilderness;  and  three  times  (en  regie)  has  the  little  rice- 
bowl  travelled  back  to  her  to  be  refilled.  Now  the  human  boa- 
constrictor  sits  sipping  tea  and  swelling  up  the  mass  of  rice  in  his 


FROM    MY    JAPANESE    GARDEN  27 

stomach,  until,  in  an  alarming  number  of  cases,  that  overworked 
organ  goes  on  strike — almost  the  only  effective  kind  of  strike 
known  in  Japan.  It  is  a  fact,  speaking  from  the  cold  statistical 
side  of  the  subject,  that  stomach  diseases  are  a  very  important 
feature  of  such  returns,  and  ulcers  and  cancer  of  the  stomach  a 
far  too  large  proportion  of  the  bills  of  mortality.  They  are  not 
a  drinking  people,  their  oriental  nerves  are  quite  equal  to  any 
strain  on  the  point  of  smoking,  their  food  is  digestible  and  well- 
cooked,  and  yet  they  suffer  frightfully.  The  only  unfavourable 
factor  is  their  method  of  eating,  which  must  be  held  responsible 
for  the  bad  results  obtained.  No!  only  the  tray  and  the  dishes 
present  native  features  in  the  breakfast  that  the  little  maid  brings 
to  O  Kami  San.  It  is  too  much  to  ask  the  American  to  give  up  his 
breakfast  foods  with  their  spice  of  controversy  and  his  coffee  with 
its  spice  of  Java  much  closer  at  hand  than  at  home.  As  to  the 
latter,  there  can  be  much  less  controversy  than  when  seven  thousand 
miles  away.  As  to  the  former,  there  can  be  as  much  partisanship 
as  between  the  faithful  followers  of  different  prophets.  All 
promise  future  happiness  and  life  eternal;  claim  the  other  fellow  to 
be  a  side-show  in  the  race,  or  a  fraud. 

The  little  maid  that  brings  the  breakfast  tray  represents  one 
side  of  a  problem  which  differs  radically  in  its  phases  from  that 
presented  to  western  life.  I  refer  to  the  servant  problem.  In 
many  respects  there  is  still  left  a  strong  leaven  of  the  pre-Restora- 
tion  days  of  1867,  in  existing  relations  between  the  members  of  the 
Japanese  household  as  a  whole.  In  the  old  days  the  relation  be- 
tween master  and  servants  seems  to  have  been  a  patriarchal  one. 
He  had  many  of  the  qualities  in  loco  parentis  in  addition  to  that 
of  employer.  Owing  to  this  double  relation  his  duties  of  care  and 
protection  increased  with  the  accentuated  obedience  required  to 
his  wishes.  Hence  the  relation  assumed  a  permanency  unknown 
in  Europe  for  more  than  three  hundred  years;  in  fact,  unknown 
since  the  emancipation  of  the  peasantry  from  a  condition  of  serf- 
dom in  which  the  individual  man  had  no  more  standing  than  the 
herd  of  swine  he  was  tending  for  his  lord.  Contests  between  king 


28  SAKURAMBO 

and  nobles,  however,  quickly  brought  the  people  into  play  as  a 
valuable  factor  to  one  side  or  to  both,  and  the  value  of  a  man's 
individuality,  as  distinct  from  communalty,  was  not  slow  in  making 
its  appearance.  Master  became  separated  from  man,  and  the 
material  advantages  as  distinguished  from  the  personal  bonds 
became  the  dominant  motives.  Old  and  tried  servants  were  com- 
mon enough  in  European  houses,  and  many  are  the  instances  of 
devotion  and  sacrifice,  all  the  greater  because  they  were  against 
the  steadily  drifting  tide  of  making  the  relation  between  master 
and  man  purely  the  financial  one  that  it  has  become  in  modern 
times,  and  eliminating  the  personal  side  altogether.  Hence 
"  Jeems  Yellowplush  "  could  have  written  his  memoirs  of  the 
Fronde  with  as  much  candour  as  Cardinal  de  Retz,  and  perhaps 
it  is  unfortunate  that  he  has  not  done  so.  And  the  "  Jeems  "  of 
that  time  was  strikingly  like  the  "  Jeems  "  of  the  early  nineteenth 
century,  if  we  can  believe  the  many  complaints  made  by  contem- 
porary writers  as  to  his  carelessness,  fondness  for  his  master's  eat- 
ables and  particularly  for  the  drinkables,  and  his  light-fingered 
affection  for  finery — in  general  terms,  his  knavishness. 

No  such  relation  had  a  chance  to  develop  in  Japan,  because 
the  feudal  system  as  such  remained  in  full  force  up  to  the  present 
with  but  little  modification,  and  because  the  groundwork  of  the 
prevailing  moral  code,  being  obedience  to  the  master  whether  in 
relation  of  father  or  lord,  lent  its  full  weight  to  the  imposition  of 
the  iron  code  which  both  interest  and  social  etiquette  imposed  on 
all  grades  of  society.  In  such  a  system  social  position  and  calling 
were  stamped  at  the  outset  on  the  individual,  and  adding  thereto  the 
national  lack  of  personality,  a  condition  of  contentment  was  reached 
with  their  lot  in  life  very  unlikely  to  rise  to  any  rebellion  against 
the  social  system.  As  with  a  handicraft,  service  ran  in  particular 
families  and  the  connection  between  lord  and  retainer  would  last 
from  generation  to  generation,  the  younger  generation  replacing 
the  older  as  it  became  unfit  for  such  service.  The  relation  of 
familiarity  thus  existing  between  employer  and  employed  did  away 
with  the  menial  side  of  the  employment  as  looked  at  purely  as  a 


FROM    MY    JAPANESE    GARDEN  29 

matter  of  gain  or  personal  advancement.     The  employed  gained 
a  prestige  from  his  more  intimate  association  with  his  lord's  family  ; 
and  the  farther  back  he  could  point  to  such  connection  was  a  source 
of  honest  pride  for  it  meant  much  as  a  certificate  of  a  clean  record 
of  loyalty  and  favour.     In  fact,  gain  or  wages  were  not  a  feature 
of  such  employment.     It  was  a  means  of  training  for  the  young 
man  or  woman  and  it  was  so  regarded.     They  were  charges  on 
their  lord's  bounty  and  it  was  their  business  to  profit  by  their  posi- 
tion to  learn  thei'r  various  future  duties  of  life  in  this  best  of  practi- 
cal schools  in  which  they  were  treated,  not  as  paid  menials,  but  as 
taking  their  share  in  the  membership  of  the  family.     Even  to  this 
day  this  is  a  feature  in  Japanese  family  life.     The  wages  are 
nominal.     These  young  girls  go  out  to  service  not  to  earn  money 
but  to  learn  to  sew,  to  cook,  to  take  care  of  children,  and  generally 
to  fit  themselves  for  their  own  future  married  life.     And  this  must 
not  be  the  haphazard  training  that  so  often  follows  now-a-days 
in  the  case  of  the  western  woman.     Sewing  is  not  confined  to  a  few 
household  articles  and  baby  clothes.     The  Japanese  woman  and  her 
maids  are  the  tailors  of  the  average  Japanese  home  and  every 
kimono  that  goes  on  her  husband's  back  is  the  product  of  the  house 
staff.     All  the  details  of  measurement,  ratios,  stitching  and  double 
stitching  according  to  rule,  are  taught  in  the  home,  and  the  Japanese 
wToman  when  she  leaves  her  parents'  home  as  bride  carries  this 
knowledge  with  her,  not  as  an  accomplishment,  but  as  a  necessity. 
She  may  not  carry  it  into  practice  herself  with  her  own  fingers,  but 
like  Penelope  she  is  supposed  at  least  to  be  the  mastermind  of  her 
handmaids.     Her  knowledge  is  practical,  not  theoretical,  and  she 
has  the  ability  to  act  if  the  occasion  calls  on  her  skill.     Anyone 
who  has  lived  in  a  Japanese  household  cannot  help  being  struck  by 
the  large  amount  of  this  needle-work.     This  is  in  part  due  to  the 
nature  of  Japanese  clothing,  which  involves  not  only  the  making 
but  the  frequent  remaking,  for  the  wadded  clothes  of  winter  are 
ripped   apart,   washed  and   dried,   and   then   put   together   again. 
Of  course,  in  the  average  Japanese  household  this  is  all  the  work 
of  nimble  fingers,  and  it  is  only  where  foreign  influence  is  at  work 


30  SAKURAMBO 

that  the  hum  of  the  sewing  machine  is  heard.  Home  seems  at 
times  a  sort  of  school  or  sewing  bee,  and  it  is  a  curious  sight  to  see 
the  little  maids'  heads  together  in  an  interested  circle  to  watch  the 
elucidation  of  some  knotty  point  in  sartorial  mechanics  as  ex- 
pounded by  the  mistress  of  the  house.  There  seems  to  be  an 
earnestness  about  the  whole  procedure  totally  different  from  the 
carrying  out  of  an  item  of  household  labour  done  by  contract  at 
so  much  a  week.  It  is  not  only  sewing,  however,  but  cooking  also 
which  forms  part  of  the  repertoire  of  O  Kami  San.  This  she  has 
no  hand  in  herself,  but  she  has  practice  to  fall  back  on  if  necessity 
arises,  and  at  all  events  the  direction  falls  on  her  to  effect  such 
variety  as  the  Japanese  menu  affords.  All  the  little  details,  from 
the  fly  flapping  in  the  morning  through  the  more  important  mat- 
ters to  the  unrolling  the  quilts  at  night  and  hanging  the  big  mos- 
quito net  in  summer,  are  part  of  the  educational  process  of  a  maid 
that  comes  as  green  as  the  grass  on  the  hillside.  And  when  she 
has  learnt  it  all  her  parents  send  for  her  and  marry  her  off.  That 
has  been  the  object  of  her  schooling,  so  to  speak. 

So  the  average  day  passes  in  the  household,  and  at  five  o'clock 
the  tension — what  there  is  of  it — perceptibly  slackens.  It  is  the 
hour  of  the  bath  which  has  been  for  some  time  heating.  In  regular 
rotation  the  household  enter  the  bath-room ;  from  the  master  down 
to  the  smallest  neya  there  is  a  procession  lasting  until  it  is  nearly 
time  to  close  the  house  for  the  night.  It  is  the  most  enjoyable 
feature  of  the  day,  although  the  great  dark  tub  is  a  source  of  terror 
to  the  children,  a  supply  of  which  commodity  is  kept  on  hand  in 
every  Japanese  household.  Japanese  children  have  quite  as  much 
original  sin  in  them  as  any  other  children  and  hate  equally  to  have 
it  washed  out.  They  too  are  an  important  item  of  neyas  educa- 
tion, their  care  and  obviation  of  their  general  "  cussedness  "  being 
part  of  the  curriculum,  so  to  speak.  Now  in  all  this  day's  work  the 
keynote  is  simplicity.  Getting  up  with  the  sun  we  have  hardly 
made  use  of  the  western  world's  artificialities  and  yet  have  got 
along  very  well.  To  cook  our  food  we  have  used  a  furnace  not  so 
widely  different  from  what  will  be  found  among  the  wandering 


FROM    MY    JAPANESE    GARDEN  31 

tribes  of  northern  Asia.  In  fact,  in  get-up  and  mechanics,  it 
rivals  the  simplicity  of  the  giant  ant  heaps  of  Australia,  which  by 
kicking  in  one  side  can  be  turned  into  a  very  tolerable  oven.  Our 
water  has  come  from  a  well  which  doubtless  any  sane  board  of 
health  would  condemn  on  its  general  surroundings  without  even 
analyzing  it ;  but  any  harmful  proclivities  have  been  neutralized  by 
boiling.  The  food  has  been  much  what  O  Kami  San's  for- 
bears ate  a  thousand  years  ago,  and  if  we  can  judge  anything  from 
the  books  of  those  days  they  would  feel  perfectly  at  home  in  the 
house  and  on  the  mats.  Politics  have  changed  much  for  the  better 
and  there  are  no  swashbuckling  samurai  to  go  around  testing  the 
edge  of  their  blade  on  harmless  beggars  and  drunken  men,  and 
generally  making  an  unpleasant  mess  on  the  sidewalk — or  what 
would  have  been  one  if  there  had  been  such  a  thing  in  those  days. 
Our  lamps — a  modern  type — are  fit  to  read  by  and  enable  us  to 
extend  the  day  with  comfort  far  beyond  the  bedtime  of  former 
days.  But  without  all  the  accessories  of  gas,  water,  electric  light, 
modern  plumbing,  stationary  washtubs,  elevators,  hydraulic  and 
other  kinds,  complex  furniture,  asphalt  paving,  and  a  hundred 
other  necessities  that  our  western  life  is  crying  for,  we  have  passed 
the  day  not  only  in  comfort  but  with  pleasure  and  profit.  Books 
and  people  are  enough  for  any  reasonable  man,  and  neither  of 
them  are  peculiar  to  modern  or  western  civilization.  Our  amuse- 
ments change  in  nature,  not  in  quality.  Doubtless  the  old  Greeks 
would  utterly  fail  in  putting  a  modern  society  play  on  the  stage, 
just  as  we  utterly  fail  in  putting  the  Greek  tragedy  or  comedy  on 
our  stage,  and  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  ask  which  stage  is  going  to 
survive  the  world  test  of  the  centuries.  A  circus  parade  is  a  worse 
than  shabby  affair  compared  to  a  Roman  triumph.  We  know  a 
little  more  of  Nature's  secrets  than  the  ancient  world,  and  most  of 
that  we  have  acquired  in  the  last  hundred  years ;  and  our  pessimism 
keeps  pace  with  our  knowledge.  Something  of  this  came  to  mind 
looking  down  at  the  lights  of  the  fishing  village  several  hundred 
feet  below  me.  These  people  were  living  identically  as  their  fore- 
fathers for  generations  had  lived.  A  kerosene  lamp  and  a  news- 


32  SAKURAMBO 

paper,  to  give  them  a  mass  of  details  on  people  and  matters  outside 
the  circle  of  their  own  hopes  and  fears,  were  the  only  additional 
items.  A  few  miles  away  was  a  city  crying  out  for  electric  trams, 
pure  water,  harbour  improvement,  and  increased  taxation.  What 
was  a  man  to  think?  These  fisherfolk  were  happy  as  the  world 
goes,  although  they  had  their  neighbours'  example  close  under  their 
eyes.  Their  neighbours  with  their  added  western  materialism  and 
restlessness  had  not  added  to  their  content.  Western  roses  have 
thorns,  and  increase  the  points  of  contact  the  more  they  will  prick. 
And  yet  these  roses  are  tempting  to  sight.  The  thorns  are  hidden 
and  young  Japan  not  overly  conservative. 


II 


BOSHU  WAY 

"  High   in   the  air  the  rock   its   summit   shrouds 
In   brooding  tempests,   and  in   rolling  clouds; 
Loud  storms  around,  and  mists  eternal  rise, 
Beat  its  bleak  brow  and  intercept  the  skies." 

— Odyssey    {Pope's   translation.) 

One  of  the  pleasantest  features  of  Japanese  character  is  its 
contentment.  I  do  not  mean  that  contentment  which  is  associated 
with  a  sort  of  vegetable  existence  too  lazy  or  too  stupid  to  want 
to  move  out  of  its  environment.  Japanese  content  is  far  from  any 
relation  with  such  a  phase ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  it  is  the  strongest 
evidence  of  the  completeness  with  which  the  people  as  a  whole 
have  entered  into  the  inward  meaning  and  spirit  of  their  surround- 
ings. Now  this  artistic  sympathy  with  their  nature  environment 
is  not  inborn  in  a  race.  It  is  a  sign  of  age.  The  young  pioneer 
nations  have  not  the  time  to  feel  that  sympathy  with  Nature  that 
is  found  in  an  older  civilization.  Nature  to  them  is  unsubdued, 
and  it  is  part  of  their  daily  labour  to  contend  with  her.  The 
American  pioneer  could  hardly  be  expected  to  look  with  unadulter- 
ated pleasure  on  the  forests  of  the  Miami  and  Monongahela. 
His  object  was  to  establish  a  home,  and  to  him  those  forests  repre- 
sented the  hardest  labour  in  clearing  them  away.  A  wearisome 
monotonous  course  of  felling,  stumping,  splitting,  and  hauling  by 
main  force  so  many  thousand  feet  of  timber  in  order  to  get  at  the 
ground  and  make  it  produce  for  him  his  daily  bread.  It  was  the 
trapper  and  explorer  that  could  find  time  and  inclination  to  appre- 
ciate the  "  murmuring  pine  and  the  hemlock."  The  husbandman 
on  the  contrary  heard  with  joy  of  the  rolling  plains  of  Kansas 
and  Nebraska,  with  few  trees  but  those  found  in  the  river  bottoms, 
and  miles  of  prairie  grass  to  feed  and  fatten  his  cattle.  The 

33 


34  SAKURAMBO 

Japanese  have  long  finished  their  contest  with  Nature  in  the  rough, 
and  this  has  taken  on  that  sleepy  immobility  that  is  found  in  a  top 
— "  movement  internal,  rest  external."  The  result  has  been  that 
Nature  has  passed  from  the  stage  of  being  an  active  enemy,  to  that 
of  a  friend  whose  every  peculiarity  is  known  by  long  acquaintance. 
There  is  all  the  charm  associated  with  intimate  knowledge  and 
pride  of  conscious  superiority.  Now  this  completeness  with  which 
Nature  arouses  and  satisfies  the  aesthetic  feelings  has  never  reached 
the  same  development  in  the  West  that  it  has  among  the  Japanese. 
Elaboration  is  the  keynote,  the  entrance  on  the  scene  of  more  or 
less  of  the  strictly  human  element,  and  a  village  of  cafes,  beer 
gardens,  and  hotels,  with  or  without  music,  is  certain  to  spring 
up  around  any  great  attraction  of  Nature  until  it  is  hard  to  tell 
which  draws  the  crowd — Nature  or  the  beer  garden.  So  with  the 
theatre.  The  cost  of  production  is  growing  to  be  a  more  important 
feature  in  the  advertising  than  the  play  itself,  and  as  the  manager 
knows  or  tries  to  know  his  public,  it  is  fair  to  assume  that  he 
judges  it  accurately  for  the  benefit  of  his  own  pocket.  The  Jap- 
anese have  as  yet  taken  but  a  short  step  on  this  road,  although  likely 
to  go  further  as  time  goes  on.  At  present  the  tea  house  in  its 
development  is  distinctly  the  merest  adjunct  to  the  attraction,  a 
rest  house  not  an  object  in  itself.  With  all  the  means  of  amuse- 
ment that  are  found  amopg  the  Japanese  as  among  other  peoples — 
music,  dancing,  pantomime,  the  stage,  character  sketches  and  story 
telling — the  Japanese  never  mix  them  with  natural  scenery.  Mar- 
gate and  Coney  Island  are  found  at  Asakusa,  not  across  the  river 
at  Mukojima  where  the  crowds  of  people  go  in  April  to  view  the 
cherry-blossoms. 

Mukojima  and  a  host  of  other  places  it  can  be  said  is  an  in- 
stance of  the  fact  that  the  Japanese  appreciate  colour  in  mass,  for 
it  is  common  to  see  it  stated  that  to  them  the  highest  form  of 
enjoyment  of  flowers  is  the  single  spray  appropriately  arranged  in 
a  vase.  This  has  indeed  been  brought  to  a  fine  art.  Perhaps  when 
the  Japanese  woman  is  "  emancipated  "  it  will  be  found  that  the 
time  now  devoted  to  training  in  such  subjects  as  flower  arrange- 


BOSHU    WAY  35 

ment  and  the  tea  ceremony  will  have  to  be  curtailed  and  devoted 
to  studies  which  will  put  her  more  on  a  par  with  man,  to  whom 
she  will  be  not  only  wife  but  companion.  It  is  undoubtedly  the 
case  that  the  western  woman  has  not  reached  her  present  develop- 
ment without  sacrificing  something.  There  are  only  twenty-four 
hours  in  the  day,  and  much  of  that  is  required  by  the  simple  neces- 
sity of  ordinary  living.  But  it  is  a  question  as  to  what  is  going 
to  be  of  more  value  to  the  race;  the  tea  ceremony  or  a  course  in 
hygiene  as  applied  to  the  household;  the  arrangement  of  flowers 
or  the  ability  to  hold  her  own  in  that  general  social  life  which  is 
bound  to  come  even  in  Japan.  After  all,  both  tea  ceremony  and 
flower  arrangement  have  reached  their  highest  development  and 
are  now  living  on  their  past  reputation.  The  period  of  seclusion 
has  passed  away  and  new7  duties  require  a  new  training.  As 
Europe  treasures  its  old  traditions  and  bewails  the  decadence  of 
these  present  days  in  all  the  finer  qualities  of  man's  nature,  so  the 
Japanese  will  cling  to  their  old  traditions  and  masterwork,  retain 
as  much  of  the  old  as  conditions  allow,  and  gradually  replace  it 
with  the  new.  Doubtless  a  millennium  from  now  our  descendants 
will  equally  be  able  to  look  back  on  arts  which  seem  lost  to  them. 
The  present  age  may  not  be  very  fruitful  from  the  aesthetic  point  of 
view  but  periods  of  great  material  and  political  activity  rarely  are 
so.  Man's  mind  after  all  is  limited.  Leaders  are  rare.  This  is 
an  age  of  science  and  of  politics,  lines  are  changing  rapidly  in  both 
spheres,  and  the  mental  material  available  to  guide  these  changes  is 
mainly  occupied  in  that  direction.  Whether  the  Japanese  will 
ever  come  to  our  "  hideous  bouquets  "  so  often  held  up  to  derision 
is  doubtful.  The  said  bouquet  is  largely  a  back  number  now  in  the 
West  and  rarely  figures  except  at  weddings  and  funerals  and  the 
debutante's  first  plunge  into  the  social  \vorld.  The  Japanese  lack 
the  one  flower  which  is  really  effective  in  that  form,  the  rose.  No 
westerner  will  admit  any  standing  to  the  Japanese  "  bara "  and 
it  is  not  at  all  surprising  that  the  Japanese  have  very  little  regard 
for  it  themselves.  The  rose  is  a  strictly  western  flower.  Whether 
as  a  single  masterpiece — the  "  American  Beauty  " — arranged  a  la 


36  SAKURAMBO 

Japonaise  on  a  maiden's  bosom,  or  en  masse  covering  a  whole  house 
as  seen  in  southern  California,  it  outrivals  any  flower  in  the  East 
in  grace  and  beauty  and  fragrance.  No  more  can  be  asked  of  the 
flower  than  the  combination  of  these  three  qualities.  It  does  not 
seem  possible  to  acclimate  the  plant  in  Japan.  Like  western  fruit, 
the  stock  soon  degenerates,  perhaps  on  account  of  the  peculiar  dis- 
tribution of  heat  and  moisture.  The  Japanese,  however,  do  enjoy 
colour  in  mass  as  shown  by  the  many  flower  shows  based  on  just 
such  effect.  In  May  crowds  of  people  flock  to  the  Honjo  district 
in  Tokyo  to  see  the  peony  show,  the  effect  depending  largely  on 
the  massing  of  the  plants  which  are  of  the  most  varied  shades  of 
colour.  In  the  middle  of  May  Kameido  is  at  its  best,  the  wisteria 
blossoms  reaching  the  length  of  a  yard  or  more.  Still  later  in  early 
June  and  in  the  same  district  the  iris  gardens  are  ready  to  display 
a  wonderful  variety  of  shade  of  the  double  iris.  All  this  pleasure 
the  Japanese  gets  at  little  cost.  His  country  is  one  of  the  most 
picturesque  in  the  world.  Every  hillside  on  the  coast  gives  a 
charming  vista  of  sea,  mountain,  and  archipelago.  He  goes  pic- 
nicking for  the  flowers  and  the  view,  not  for  the  beer,  or  the  merry- 
go-rounds,  the  shoot-the-chutes,  that  the  time  and  money  available 
will  allow  him.  He  not  only  wants  to  enjoy  himself,  but  he  wants 
to  enjoy  the  view,  and  the  latter  is  inextricably  involved  as  the 
chief  feature  of  the  outing.  This  characteristic  it  is  to  be  hoped 
they  will  long  retain. 

Apart  from  the  flower  shows  Honjo  presents  but  little  other 
attraction.  It  is  mainly  a  collection  of  small  houses  inhabited  by 
fishermen  and  artisans  and  whenever  plague  or  cholera  visits 
Tokyo  it  is  pretty  sure  that  Honjo  has  or  will  have  a  hand  in  it. 
However  it  contains  a  railway  station,  not  absolutely  necessary 
but  still  presenting  great  advantages  over  Uyeno  for  reaching  the 
country  directly  east  of  the  great  city.  For  several  years  I  had 
been  looking  over  the  bay  at  the  misty  blue  range  of  hills  on  the 
other  side,  of  which  Nokogiriyama  and  Kanozan  are  the  most 
distinctive  features.  In  legendary  days  of  yore  those  blue  inter- 
vening waters  had  witnessed  the  self-sacrifice  of  the  Princess  Oto- 


BOSHU    WAY  37 

Tachibana,  wife  of  Yamato-take  the  hero,  then  on  his  mission 
against  the  hairy  men  of  the  North;  traits  of  character  that 
show  that  her  sex  has  changed  but  little  in  these  many  years. 
Later  it  was  among  those  hills  that  Yoritomo,  first  of  the  Mina- 
moto  Shoguns,  sought  refuge,  and  in  fact  Boshu,  or  Awa,  seems 
to  have  been  the  refuge  of  those  whose  political  fortunes  were  under 
a  cloud.  Nowadays  there  is  no  particular  reason  to  take  anyone 
there.  The  guide  book  speaks  of  it  pleasantly  but  slightingly  as  a 
nice  winter  trip  in  which  such  phenomena  as  flowers  and  naked 
people  were  to  be  seen  in  December.  Not  at  all  wonderful  as  to 
the  display,  but  as  to  season  and  about  which  I  was  somewhat 
sceptical  withal  for  I  had  been  led  one  winter  to  Atami,  in  part  by 
the  deceptive  orange  groves  to  be  seen  growing  all  through  the 
countryside.  The  Japanese  orange  however  I  found  to  be  a 
broken  reed  as  an  indicator  of  climate.  The  local  orange  grower 
does  not  sit  up  at  nights  losing  sleep  over  cold  snaps  and  providing 
steam  heat  and  wood  fires  for  his  trees.  The  tree  has  a  supreme 
indifference  to  frost  or  to  snow  and  the  sun  comes  out  on  the  winter 
days  to  warm  everything  into  life  only  to  be  locked  up  again  in  a 
zero  temperature  at  nightfall.  The  ultimate  result  of  this  erratic 
treatment  for  a  tree  so  delicate  as  the  orange  is  a  fruit  of  the 
mandarin  size,  sweet  with  a  pleasant  tart  twang. 

With  these  cold  winter  nights  of  Atami  therefore  in  mind  I 
postponed  my  visit  to  this  "  shadowy  land  of  Avilion  "  until  the 
warmer  weather  of  spring  made  Japanese  inns  less  of  a  winter 
campaign  in  the  open.  Hence  the  first  of  May  found  me  at  Honjo 
station  with  a  minimum  of  luggage  and  also  of  expectation,  for 
little  was  anticipated  beyond  pleasant  valleys,  rice-fields  laid  out  in 
checkerboards  between  low  hills,  and  native  villages  recalling  some 
unfortunate  town  which  has  long  ago  been  wiped  out  by  fire  and 
rebuilt  temporarily,  only  the  inhabitants  have  forgotten  or  been  too 
busy  to  rebuild  in  a  more  substantial  manner.  Leaving  Honjo 
this  anticipation  was  realized;  low  hills  to  the  left  and  the  wide 
expanse  of  paddy  fields  to  the  right  pleasantly  varied  at  times  by 
glimpses  of  the  bay.  As  Ohara,  the  present  jumping-off  place  of 


38  SAKURAMB6 

the  railway,  is  approached  the  hills  become  a  feature.  Travel  is 
very  light  on  this  section  as  most  of  the  traffic  is  diverted  at  Chiba 
to  go  toward  Narita  and  the  villages  near  the  mouth  of  the  Tama- 
gawa.  At  present  the  Ohara  line  is  neither  fish,  flesh,  nor  fowl,  the 
terminus  being  a  tiny  place,  but  with  some  little  inns  at  which  one 
can  put  up  for  the  night  if  a  sunrise  start  is  desired  down  the  coast. 
I  managed  to  rout  out  a  kurumaya,  a  most  ancient  man  who  seemed 
to  drop  some  present  occupation  to  take  me  and  my  furniture  part 
of  the  ten  miles  to  Katsuura.  The  road  \vas  mainly  good,  the  hills 
pleasing  to  the  eye  and  much  as  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Kamakura, 
and  some  touch  •  of  interest  was  found  in  a  traveller  bound  to 
Tokyo — a  large  maguro  fish,  some  ten  or  twelve  feet  in  length, 
riding  in  state  and  pushed  along  by  a  crowd  of  joyful  fishermen. 
A  good  haul,  for  such  a  fish  I  was  told  was  worth  a  hundred  yen  to 
the  Tokyo  market.  My  djisan  (honourable  old  gentleman)  left 
me  to  my  own  devices  at  the  half-way  stage,  a  knrumaya  rest  house 
at  the  point  where  the  road  reaches  the  sea.  This  place  was  better 
supplied  and  soon  I  was  bowling  along  with  a  pushman  in  addition, 
through  fishing  villages  and  tunnels  with  slices  of  road  interspersed 
and  which  seemed  to  improve  with  its  distance  from  metropolitan 
life.  It  was  getting  toward  night  and  the  fishermen  were  already 
pushing  off  and  putting  to  sea  for  the  night's  work.  Ten  to  twenty 
men  to  a  boat,  naked  to  a  breech  clout,  shouting  and  chanting, 
pushing  and  tugging,  but  with  very  little  misdirected  effort.  Old 
men  and  children  watched  the  process  and  the  gay  pictured  kimo- 
nos, seen  in  scattered  cases  through  the  "  treaty  ports,"  were  here 
the  general  outfit.  Women  seemed  to  be  otherwise  engaged  as 
they  were  conspicuous  by  their  absence,  the  group  of  watchers 
being  almost  entirely  men.  I  cannot  say  that  my  welcome  at  my  inn 
at  Katsuura  was  a  warm  one.  This  is  one  of  the  accidents  of 
travelling  in  unfrequented  corners  and  even  then  is  of  rare  occur- 
rence. Misgivings  as  to  chadai  or  tea  money  I  think  have  little 
to  do  with  it,  for  the  innkeepers  usually  charge  foreigners  on  a 
separate  scale  and  incidentally  get  chadai  in  addition.  There  is 
perhaps  an  unwillingness  to  break  the  routine  to  cater  to  the  possi- 


or  THI  ^ 

UNIVERSITY 


^CA- 

BOSHU    WAY 

ble  idiosyncrasies  of  the  foreigner  which  they  do  not  understand 
and  yet  in  the  satisfaction  of  which  they  do  not  want  to  fail. 
Again,  the  presence  of  a  foreigner  is  always  a  matter  of  curiosity 
in  out  of  the  way  places  and  curiosity  is  not  always  pleasant  to 
either  innkeeper  or  his  guests.  Also,  as  is  not  unknown  in  the 
West,  there  are  inns  that  wish  to  confine  their  custom  to  the  native. 
The  foreigner  is  only  an  occasional  item  in  their  clientele,  unprofit- 
able and  perhaps  annoying.  There  is  moreover  another  compli- 
cation for  the  innkeeper.  The  places  of  public  resort  are  peculiarly 
under  the  thumb  of  the  police,  and  they  wish  no  trouble  from  that 
quarter,  the  simplest  method  therefore  being  that  of  avoidance. 
The  presence  of  a  foreigner  in  a  place  is  particularly  noted.  On 
application  to  the  police,  if  it  is  feasible  at  all,  the  foreign  traveller 
can  get  placed  for  the  very  good  reason  that  his  source  of  intro- 
duction is  unimpeachable.  If,  however,  he  is  taken  in  without  ques- 
tion and  trouble  subsequently  arises,  the  innkeeper  is  liable  to  an 
overhauling  and  his  compliance  with  all  the  formalities  gone  into 
by  very  hypercritical  judges  seeking  a  scapegoat.  Travel  could 
be  so  hampered  by  a  simple  hint  from  headquarters  to  refuse 
accommodation  that  the  country  would  practically  be  as  close  as 
before  the  revision  of  the  Treaties.  It  happens  therefore  that  it  is 
necessary  at  times  to  make  one's  way  good,  and  on  such  occasions 
once  ensconced  in  the  inn  to  lose  all  knowledge  even  fragmentary  of 
the  native  tongue.  In  time  they  will  cease  dangling  before  the 
eyes  of  the  obtuse  foreigner  the  different  means  of  exit  from  the 
town,  and  leave  him  alone  much  as  one  lets  time  and  a  burly 
canine  planted  on  his  premises  take  their  course  in  due  season. 
It  can  be  added  that  it  is  no  small  matter  in  such  cases  to  get 
ensconced  behind  the  shoji.  A  favourable  condition  due  simply 
to  the  innkeeper's  hesitating  frame  of  mind.  In  the  morning  my 
hosts  and  I  parted  company  on  rather  cold  terms.  I  stuffed  away 
in  available  pockets  the  little  book  and  towel  which  formed  part  of 
the  external  expression  of  our  mutual  forbearance  toward  each 
other  and  much  etiquette  was  wasted  on  both  sides.  They  cer- 
tainly fulfilled  all  the  duties  of  a  host  and  made  a  good  bargain 


40  SAKURAMBO 

for  me  with  the  kurumaya  who  were  to  take  me  onward  as  far  as 
Hojo  that  night.  Nothing  more  than  that  can  fairly  be  asked  of 
any  inn. 

It  was  beyond  Katsuura  that  the  pleasantness  of  the  surprise 
of  this  new  district  came  upon  me.  So  near  Yokohama,  here  was 
a  place  of  which  people  seemed  to  know  little  and  care  less.  From 
Katsuura  to  Matsuda  was  a  succession  of  landscapes,  cape  after 
cape  stretching  into  the  ocean.  In  the  intervening  valleys  the  road 
ran  beside  the  sea  and  through  the  fishing  villages.  Then  it  would 
ascend  some  narrow  valley,  gradually  working  its  way  into  a  sort 
of  cul-de-sac  and  then  plunging  through  a  tunnel,  giving  on  the 
further  side  a  picture  of  land,  sea,  and  rice-field,  set  as  it  were  in 
a  natural  frame.  From  Katsuura  and  almost  to  Kamogawa  the 
coast  was  of  a  bold  character.  The  road,  a  sort  of  Corniche  road, 
was  cut  in  the  face  of  the  cliffs,  and  ran  along  at  times  several 
hundred  feet  sheer  above  the  sea.  There  are  places  along  this 
stretch,  at  the  narrow  turns  on  the  face  of  the  cliff,  that  must  carry 
no  little  danger  in  a  heavy  gale  to  vehicles  and  even  to  men.  The 
road  is  narrow  and  without  any  protection  whatever.  Standing  on 
such  a  headland  one  looks  far  down  the  coast  to  Cape  Nojima  and 
often  just  at  one's  feet  and  filling  the  width  of  a  narrow  valley  lies 
a  jumble  of  roofs,  a  fishing  village  notable  in  these  parts  for  cleanli- 
ness. So  it  goes  on  over  a  fairly  good  highway,  up  and  down, 
through  the  little  valleys  and  around  the  faces  of  the  cliffs  in  pic- 
turesque alternation.  It  is  not  always  plain  sailing  however.  The 
tunnels  are  very  numerous  and  sometimes  undergoing  repair.  A 
stiff  climb  over  one  took  me  to  the  Nichiren  temple  at  Kominato, 
where  I  had  to  wait  until  my  kurumaya  arranged  for  our  future 
progress,  for  the  original  kurwna  could  not  be  "  toted  "  up  the 
steep  footway.  The  site  of  this  temple  is  the  very  dubious  place  of 
the  saint's  birth;  the  supposed  original  being  under  water  as  the 
coast  is  losing  to  the  sea  on  this  side.  He  has  gained  by  the  trans- 
fer, for  it  is  the  most  picturesque  spot  in  the  neighbourhood.  The 
lack  of  any  obtrusively  Japanese  vegetation  on  the  scene  gave  it  a 
touch  of  resemblance  to  our  western  world.  A  well-kept  shaded 


BOSHU    WAY  41 

road,  the  "  God's  acre  "  with  its  temple  outline  only  dimly  shad- 
owed among  the  large  trees  and  the  low  w^all  surrounding  the 
whole,  recalled  in  a  way  a  scene  often  met  with  on  the  outskirts  of 
some  of  our  country  villages  which  have  gone  to  sleep  for  the  past 
sixty  years  or  more  and  have  never  grown  up  to  and  around  the 
old  church  placed  on  its  outskirts.  An  excellent  luncheon  at  the 
Yoshidaya  at  Kamogawa  marked  the  end  of  this  more  picturesque 
section  of  the  day's  ride.  Changing  men  I  soon  reached  Matsuda, 
at  which  point  the  road  cuts  across  the  peninsula  to  Ho  jo,  a  dis- 
tance of  about  eight  miles.  Matsuda  afforded  another  pleasant 
surprise.  Japanese  towns  are  not  conspicuous  by  their  attractive- 
ness. In  fact  they  are  unusually  commonplace  and  ugly,  the 
graceful  curves  of  the  roofs  being  the  only  redeeming  feature. 
But  Matsuda  recalls  all  the  pleasing  greenness  of  an  English  lane. 
The  houses  are  hidden  behind  hedges  and  there  is  a  long  vista  of 
green  looking  down  the  town.  Passing  under  this  archway  of 
trees  soon  brings  one  again  into  open  country,  broader  valleys  and 
rice-fields  broken  up  by  fantastic  hills,  and  over  a  splendid  road 
by  which  my  kurumaya,  covering  the  eight  miles  in  a  trifle  over  an 
hour,  landed  me  at  the  Kimuraya  of  Ho  jo. 

These  excellent  inns  in  such  an  out  of  the  way  corner  as  this 
edge  of  Boshu  have  a  reason  for  their  being.  At  this  May  season 
Ho  jo  was  empty,  but  the  land  has  a  reputation  in  the  Japanese 
world  for  mildness  in  winter  and  for  bathing  in  summer.  Many 
of  the  quieter  people  of  the  better  class  of  Tokyo  make  a  yearly 
pilgrimage  hitherward.  Only  one  remnant  still  clung  to  the  Kimu- 
raya at  this  off  season.  A  venerable  old  gentleman  who  was 
accompanied  by  quite  a  large  family,  some  of  the  younger  members 
of  which  must  have  been  granddaughters,  although  a  Japanese 
retires  from  life  and  takes  on  the  appearance  of  Ojisan  so  early 
that  it  is  easy  to  mistake  the  second  for  the  third  generation.  Jap- 
anese and  western  social  life  often  touch  at  some  unexpected  point. 
I  do  not  refer  to  the  receptions,  balls,  and  dinners  given  in  foreign 
style  in  Tokyo,  wrhere  men  and  women  meet  on  terms  akin,  in  out- 
ward seeming  anyhow,  to  western  usage ;  but  to  the  social  life  as 


42  SAKURAMBO 

carried  on  independent  of  any  but  native  usages.  Women  have 
their  outside  interests,  their  circles  and  societies  for  relief  of  the 
poor,  interests  of  school  girls,  hospital  service,  study  of  poetry, 
needlework,  and  a  dozen  and  one  other  social  objects.  In  the  rela- 
tion of  women  with  women  the  social  life  is  free  enough  or  could 
be  made  so  without  opposition  from  any  source,  personal  or  con- 
ventional. In  the  home  circle  the  relations  between  the  sexes 
is  free  enough.  The  older  women  join  freely  in  conversation; 
the  younger,  as  they  do  or  should  do  elsewhere,  do  not  volunteer 
information  until  they  are  asked.  Visiting  perhaps  is  not  so 
general  as  with  us  even  among  the  women,  being  largely  between 
families  related  in  some  way  by  marriage  or  blood,  and  there  is  no 
such  concession  shown  to  youth  as  represented  by  social  functions 
which  are  mainly  devoted  to  the  pleasure  of  the  young,  and  which 
are  conspicuously  a  feature  of  Anglo-Saxon  life.  The  Japanese 
father  does  not  stand  around  cooling  his  head  and  his  heels  until 
the  sun  rises,  while  some  young  daughter  wearies  herself  out  with 
dancing  and  flirtation;  both  to  return  home,  she  to  sleep  until 
midday,  and  he  to  go  to  his  office  at  nine  o'clock. 

The  main  feature  of  European  life,  the  formal  social  inter- 
course between  the  sexes,  is  the  feature  that  is  lacking  in  Japanese 
life.  External  social  life  of 'course  exists  but  is  confined  to  men, 
moving  much  on  the  same  plane  as  in  the  West,  only  granting  dif- 
ference in  national  taste  and  always  apart  from  the  home.  Formal 
dinners  and  any  such  features  of  social  life  are  confined  to  the  tea 
house.  There  it  is  that  the  Japanese  seeks  to  entertain  his  friends 
in  sittings  that  last  for  hours,  and  on  such  occasions  appear  the  only 
touch  of  femininity  that  is  allowable  in  such  public  life — the  geisha. 
This  little  creature  is  a  product  that  it  is  extremely  hard  to  classify 
because  western  life  has  nothing  exactly  to  correspond.  Her 
training  is  entirely  directed  in  wit  and  accomplishments — dancing, 
singing  and  playing  various  musical  instruments — toward  pleasing 
men,  and  not  only  men  but  she  must  gauge  the  tastes  of  her  par- 
ticular employers  at  the  time.  The  dancing  and  singing  is  but 
part  of  her  "  business."  It  is  the  "  coffee  and  repartee,"  so  to 


BOSHU    WAY  43 

speak,  between  these  intervals  of  the  entertainment,  the  more  inti- 
mate chatter,  that  is  the  attractive  feature.  In  some  ways  she 
could  be  compared  to  the  chorus  girl  of  the  western  stage  only  the 
after-theatre  life  of  the  latter  is  purely  her  private  affair,  wrhereas 
with  the  geisha  it  is  the  main  part  of  her  function  as  entertainer. 
The  comparison  it  can  be  said  is,  from  an  artistic  point  of  view, 
hardly  fair  to  the  geisha  who  is  a  product  of  a  very  high  and 
specialized  training  which  raises  her  to  that  plane  where  the  sym- 
bolism in  her  art  in  dancing  (posturing)  and  singing  calls  in  full 
play  a  species  of  elaborate  mental  aesthetics — a  feature  certainly  far 
from  being  connected  with  the  chorus  of  the  comic  opera  stage 
which  appeals  purely  to  the  eye.  In  some  features  she  forms  what 
might  be  called  the  demi-mondaine  of  Japan,  but  here  again  one 
would  never  think  of  her  in  connection  with  Sappho,  ancient  or 
modern.  Charming  and  witty  as  she  often  is,  it  is  more  as  child 
than  as  woman ;  a  plaything  for  idle  hours,  not  a  steel  that  can  flash 
out  brilliants  when  the  occasion  calls  for  it,  and  the  tragedy  so  often 
thrown  across  Sappho's  path  rarely  figures  in  that  of  the  geisha. 
There  is  one  ground  on  which  she  and  her  western  sister  of  the 
night  life  of  great  cities  meet.  Both  are  equally  looked  down  on 
and  envied  by  the  rest  of  their  sex  for  their  life,  apparently  one  of 
gay  careless  freedom.  Fashions  in  Paris  first  appear  on  the 
boulevards  and  geisha  deeds  and  misdeeds  are  constantly  on  the 
tongue  of  Japanese  women ;  and  any  good  Japanese  woman  would 
resent  being  taken  for  a  geisha,  although  she  would  speak  wrarmly 
of  her  beauty  and  her  dancing. 

After  all  that  a  few  gentlemen  should  meet  for  eating,  drink- 
ing, and  otherwise  disporting  themselves  adds  but  little  to  the 
general  life  of  a  people.  The  brilliant  night  life  of  great  European 
and  American  cities  is  not  found  in  Japan.  Matsuris  or  temple 
festivals,  really  fairs,  are  very  small  change  compared  to  the  pano- 
rama of  cosmopolitan  life  that  streams  along  the  boulevards  of 
Paris.  For  this  the  sexlessness  of  public  life  is  responsible.  Men 
have  their  clubs  based  on  all  sorts  of  objects,  useful  or  otherwise, 
as  are  clubs  in  the  West.  Political  clubs  abound  and,  as  politics 


44  SAKURAMBO 

are  warm  in  Japan,  new  clubs  are  constantly  in  formation  by  a  sort 
of  fissile  process.  Scientific  associations  hold  meetings  on  all  sorts 
of  subjects.  The  Japanese  is  by  no  means  unclubbable.  Quite 
the  contrary.  He  does  not  seem  to  be  able  to  get  along  without 
his  kind.  But  women  cutting  no  figure  in  man's  public  life,  our 
general  panorama  of  society  is  unknown.  Now  man  (specific)  is 
far  more  given  to  sensual  pleasure  than  woman,  and  there  is  more 
particular  application  to  him  of  the  saying  that  "  his  god  is  his 
belly."  It  is  no  difficult  matter  to  prove  this,  for  the  increasing 
influence  of  woman  in  social  life  has  been  accompanied  by  the 
retirement  of  the  kitchen  to  the  rear  of  the  house.  In  the  good  old 
Saxon  days,  and  long  after,  our  ancestors  used  mainly  to  devote 
themselves  to  eating  and  drinking.  Dinner  began  early  and  lasted 
pretty  much  all  day.  The  great  hall  or  dining  room  was  the  room 
of  the  house,  and  manners  were  such  that  woman  generally  had 
to  disappear  from  the  feast  long  before  it  got  a  good  start.  The 
wine  came  on  with  breakfast,  and  not  in  the  more  moderate  allow- 
ance of  our  modern  feasts.  But  with  the  gradual  emergence  of 
woman  from  her  seclusion  of  the  early  feudal  days,  the  dining 
room  gradually  loses  its  importance  until  in  these  present  times  the 
great  hall  has  been  replaced  by  the  drawing  room,  and  the  dining 
room  has  been  converted  into  as  strictly  special  a  use  as  a  bed- 
room and  has  lost  its  position  as  the  social  centre  of  the  household. 
Now  if  man  makes  a  minor  feature  of  social  display — only 
relatively  speaking  for  the  high-sounding  "  titles  "  and  "  rituals," 
and  the  gold  lace  sprinkled  over  the  trappings  of  some  harmless 
creature  whenever  "  the  lodge  "  appears  en  masse  and  in  public 
gives  evidence  that  also  in  him  the  inclination  for  such  display 
exists — it  is  the  ne-plus-ultrci  of  woman's  life.  Her  public  life  is 
a  competition  of  personal  appearance  with  other  women,  and,  as 
nature  has  given  an  unchangeable  basis  on  which  to  work,  this 
competition  can  only  be  equalized  by  the  more  or  less  skilful  use 
that  art,  whether  of  costume  or  cosmetic,  affords.  That  side  of 
social  life  therefore  of  which  woman  is  the  commanding  figure 
takes  on  the  features  of  a  stage  setting  in  which  the  scenery  is  no 


BOS  HO    WAY  45 

inconsiderable  part  of  the  display.  The  frame  must  be  adequate 
to  the  picture  that  is  to  be  set  in  it.  The  broader  her  stage  the 
better  pleased  she  is,  and  it  can  be  seen  that  the  more  related  any 
purely  social  function  is  to  display,  the  wider  the  influence  of 
woman  appears  in  it.  Display  being  the  main  object,  the  relation 
between  the  individuals  drops  into  mere  formalities,  the  inanities 
of  polite  conversation  in  its  general  assemblies.  It  is  intercourse 
of  people  who  merely  meet  each  other  to  make  comparisons  and  not 
for  any  real  object  of  vital  interest  to  them.  Not  that  these  wider 
gatherings  have  not  a  deeper  meaning.  They  have  a  much  deeper 
meaning  and  in  fact  grow  out  of  the  gradual  development  of  the 
individual  in  European  society.  The  gradual  appearance  of 
woman  from  her  feudal  environment  up  to  the  present  when  she 
walks  the  earth  free  and  untrammelled  has  gone  pari  passu  with  the 
widening  of  the  sphere  of  the  individual  until  to-day  man  is  left  in 
free  course  to  work  out  his  life  without  interference  from  his  fel- 
lows, provided  he  does  not  interfere  with  them.  But  as  man  is 
individually  the  freer,  so  he  is  more  thrown  back  on  himself  and 
the  more  isolated  he  has  become.  Competition  having  become 
wider  the  wife  has  stepped  out  into  the  arena  of  life,  and  from  being 
merely  the  regulator  and  guardian  of  the  household  she  has  be- 
come also  an  active  ally  in  his  struggle  with  the  world,  A  man 
cannot  in  these  days  voluntarily  reduce  the  effectiveness  of  his 
right  arm,  so  to  speak.  Public  life  does  not  consist  merely  in 
doing  so  many  hours'  work  a  day  at  a  fixed  reward.  It  also  means 
keeping  in  touch  with  his  fellows  as  far  as  possible.  Man  is  a 
gregarious  animal,  and  it  is  through  and  by  the  herd  that  he  works. 
As  breadwinner  he  finds  his  hands  full,  and  as  breadwinner  he  finds 
that  concentration  on  the  object  in  view  is  essential  to  success. 
Effort  cannot  be  scattered.  Hence  this  regulating  of  the  more 
formal  intercourse  has  been  left  to  the  woman  and  has  taken  that 
form  of  development  which  her  love  of  display  demands. 

This  outer  form,  the  shell  so  to  speak,  is  what  is  visible  to  the 
outside  world.  It  is  often  the  only  part  visible  to  many  inside 
the  charmed  circle,  but  if  so  they  are  mere  pawns  in  a  game  which 


46  SAKURAMBO 

has  life's  success  for  its  object,  and  at  times  both  stake  and  players 
are  of  the  highest.  It  is  the  only  field  on  which  man  can  look 
over  his  future  antagonist  before  he  comes  to  grips  with  him, 
the  ground  set  apart  from  the  field  of  contest  where  no  business 
and  any  business  can  be  approached  through  the  inanity  of  general 
formula,  can  be  touched  on  lightly,  cursorily,  incidentally,  and  then 
be  referred  to  the  more  serious  moments,  and  all  without  that 
earnestness  which  necessarily  must  be  attached  to  matters  that 
men  regard  as  of  vital  interest.  The  importance  we  attach  to  it  is 
found  in  the  stress  we  lay  on  "  keeping  up  one's  appearance  in  the 
world."  And  sharply  does  the  world  scrutinize  its  members  for 
often  this  formal  society  is  the  only  means  of  judging  a  man's 
capability  to  fit  the  standard  he  aspires  to  maintain.  Not  always 
a  good  means  of  judging,  as  the  bankrupt  list,  moral  and  financial, 
shows  of  people  who  have  kept  up  appearance  to  the  final  smash. 
However  it  is  a  means  of  judging  more  palpable  instances  of 
decline  in  worldly  prosperity.  From  the  Minister  of  State  to  the 
townsfolk  "  who  hold  a  general  amalgamation  of  themselves  in  the 
town  hall,"  as  Mr.  Bantam,  M.C.,  described  it,  this  general  field  is 
their  field  of  observation  and  man  willingly  lets  the  woman  work 
her  will  in  it,  set  its  rules  and  manage  its  details.  He  has  enough 
to  do  without  more  minutiae.  This  feature,  I  think,  ordinarily 
escapes  an  easterner  brought  in  contact  with  western  society.  To 
him  it  is  often  merely  subserviency  to  women  whose  proper  sphere 
is  the  home  in  his  opinion  and  who  figure  very  badly  outside  of  it. 
To  Japanese  eyes  the  Bois  parade  and  Rotten  Row  must  be  a  great 
puzzle.  The  round  of  balls,  receptions,  theatre  parties,  where 
apparently  to  judge  from  the  inmates  of  the  boxes  the  play  is  the 
last  thing  thought  of,  all  these  features  of  western  life  are  conces- 
sions to  woman's  whims  that  are  foreign  to  his  outlook.  His  life 
is  largely  bound  by  convention  both  in  politics  and  in  its  social 
features  where  it  touches  the  lives  of  other  men.  Not  so  the 
westerner.  He  largely  stands  alone.  Associations  of  men  by  their 
very  nature  have  a  cut  and  dried  object  or  else  an  intimacy  too 
close  to  cover  the  exact  field  here  sought.  Neither  the  club  nor 


BOSHU    WAY  47 

the  convention  will  cover  it  and  so  he  has  invented  a  new  witenage- 
mote  and  left  the  framing  of  its  rules  to  the  other  sex,  while  he 
uses  it  as  a  new  instrument  for  his  advancement  and  protection 
in  this  complex  modern  world. 

To  the  European  the  East  has  no  social  life  at  all.  The  man 
is  alone  or  else  figures  at  a  set  feast.  His  contact  is  at  a  few  points 
with  those  interested  in  his  particular  life  work  or  in  the  intimate 
relationship  of  personal  friends.  With  society,  as  a  whole,  he  has 
nothing  to  do.  Indeed,  if  usage  had  not  crystallized  certain  rules 
into  an  automatic  feature  of  his  daily  life  it  is  hard  to  see  how 
his  rulers  would  get  in  touch  with  him  except  by  the  aid  of  a  police- 
man. The  different  small  spheres  in  which  men  find  themselves 
of  course  touch  each  other,  the  whole  forming  the  body  politic. 
Society  therefore  in  the  western  acceptation  of  the  term  is  a  con- 
geries of  such  associations  not  one  homogeneous  well-kneaded 
mass.  Now  I  think  Japanese  politics  bear  this  out.  Intensely 
national  they  are  intensely  sectional.  Indifferently  this  can  be  put 
clown  to  the  history  of  the  race,  or  to  the  history  of  the  race  can  be 
attributed  their  sectionalism.  They  are  convertible  terms.  Japan 
of  the  past  is  usually  described  as  a  feudalism.  A  feudalism  which 
in  its  modification  so  closely  follows  the  history  of  feudalism  in 
Europe  that  the  parallel  between  the  two  is  interesting.  The 
feudal  system  in  Europe,  for  instance,  can  be  limited  to  that  time 
during  which  the  great  lords,  while  owing  their  service  and  alle- 
giance to  the  king,  were  ecjually  supreme  in  their  own  dominions 
over  their  own  subjects.  The  breakdown  of  the  system  was 
gradual.  In  France  it  began  with  the  reign  of  Louis  XI  and  was 
completed  under  Louis  XIV  by  Mazarin  and  Colbert.  Under  the 
latter  king  we  find  that  his  writ  runs  everywhere,  and  that  when 
the  local  authority  is  in  collision  with  it,  this  must  yield  at  once  by 
the  very  source  of  its  issuance.  Great  lords  there  were  with  great 
powers  in  their  hands,  but  before  the  king  sitting  in  Parliament 
on  a  "  Bed  of  Justice  "  the  greatest  of  them  was  wax  before  the 
flame.  Absolutism  reigned  supreme.  "  I  am  the  State,"  said 
Louis,  who  from  the  time  he  came  to  manhood  had  not  even  to 


48  SAKURAMBO 

juggle  parliaments  to  make  them  yield.  And  so  it  lasted  up  to  the 
reign  of  Louis  XVI.  Now  something  like  this  obtained  in  Japan 
from  the  time  of  Tokugawa  lyeyasu.  With  the  final  crushing 
of  the  great  daimyo  there  was  no  place  in  which  the  Tokugawa 
writ  did  not  run  and  no  place  where  the  final  decision  sent  down 
from  Yedo  did  not  command  instant  obedience.  This  was  accom- 
plished in  Japan  in  much  the  same  way  as  in  France  by  a  judicious 
lopping  off  the  heads  that  stuck  above  the  crowd  and  by  impover- 
ishing the  nobility.  But  here  Tokugawa  centralization  of  feudal- 
ism stopped.  They  always  continued  to  deal  with  the  daimyo 
alone  who  were  left  absolute  within  their  dominions.  With  the 
people  at  large  they  had  no  contact. 

As  Richelieu  found  that  Henry  IV  and  his  great  minister  had 
paved  the  way  for  him,  so  lyeyasu  had  his  way  made  easier  by 
Nobunaga  and  Hideyoshi,  and  when  he  died  the  kingdom  passed 
to  his  grandson  lyemitsu  with  very  little  to  do  except  to  keep  things 
in  the  same  condition.  That  he  did  not  reach  the  same  absolute 
position  as  Louis  XIV  is  due  to  a  complicating  factor.  If  Rome 
and  the  Papal  Court  had  formed  part  of  Louis'  dominions  he  too 
in  all  fulness  could  not  have  said  "  I  am  the  State."  There  were 
two  reasons  why  the  Tokugawa  court  never  reached  the  splendour 
of  the  French  court.  It  always  had  a  rival  in  the  Court  of  Kyoto 
which,  while  of  little  importance  from  a  political  point  of  view, 
always  maintained  its  ascendancy  as  the  nominal  fount  of  honours 
bestowed,  and  by  its  continued  existence  always  kept  alive  the 
knowledge  that  there  had  been  another  power  in  the  land.  The 
Tokugawa  system  also  deliberately  maintained  the  clans.  No 
matter  how  absolute  that  government  its  system  was  really  based 
on  a  balancing  of  one  daimyo  or  baron  against  his  neighbours  and 
elaborate  rules  restricting  free  passage  from  one  district  to  another 
kept  alive  the  local  spirit.  Instead  of  fusing  the  people  into  one 
homogeneous  mass  loyal  to  the  government  as  such,  the  nation 
was  made  up  of  a  series  of  clans  whose  loyalty  was  due  to  their 
chief  and  whose  common  head  was  still  the  shadowy  priest  Em- 
peror who  had  become  to  them  almost  a  tradition.  It  is  not  diffi- 


BOSHU    WAY  49 

cult,  however,  to  see  that  as  the  Tokugawa  influence  gradually 
waned  through  enervation — a  course  almost  inevitable  where  for  a 
long  period  the  conditions  were  not  such  as  to  call  for  strong  men 
— the  clans  whose  interests  were  directly  opposite,  the  "  outs  "  as 
opposed  to  the  "  ins,"  would  simply  await  the  favourable  oppor- 
tunity to  supplant  them.  The  revival  of  the  study  of  shinto  or  the 
national  religion  had  directed  the  attention  of  the  warlike  class  to 
the  only  feasible  rallying  point.  Long  experience  of  the  advantage 
of  a  central  power  prevented  any  return  to  the  clan  system  in  its 
original  heterogeneity  of  the  fifteenth  century,  and  the  presence 
of  the  foreigners  knocking  for  admittance  also  forbade  any  return 
to  such  a  rope  of  sand.  Satsuma  and  Choshu  ousted  Tokugawa  in 
the  name  of  the  Emperor  but  the  very  fact  ensured  the  moderniza- 
tion of  the  political  system.  This  of  course  was  not  done  at  a  jump, 
and  dissatisfaction  was  so  great  that  the  Satsuma  rebellion  was  an 
almost  necessary  consequence  before  the  country  could  settle  down 
under  the  centralized  government  which  was  foreign  to  the  ideas 
of  the  people  at  large.  This  rebellion  was  due  in  part  to  reaction 
against  such  centralization  which  stripped  the  reactionary  element 
of  the  last  shadow  of  feudal  power  in  their  principalities,  and  in 
part  to  the  absorption  of  the  governing  power  by  the  progressive 
element  which  excluded  such  reactionaries  from  any  share  in  the 
spoiling  of  the  Tokugawa. 

\Yhere  difference  between  parties  however  is  based  not  on 
some  national  policy  but  on  supposed  local  interests  or  clan  jeal- 
ousy, the  rallying  points  are  very  numerous  and  the  parties  of  the 
Japanese  Diet  are  difficult  to  follow.  Sometimes  they  seemed 
based  on  locality  as  North  and  South.  Again  one  man  of  particu- 
lar abilities,  and  with  a  wish  to  impress  some  policy  or  system  of 
economics  on  the  national  legislation,  has  his. body  of  supporters 
who  do  not  hesitate  to  bolt  from  the  party  caucus  if  their  immediate 
leader  thinks  their  principles  violated.  In  other  words,  if  parties 
are  numerous,  factions  within  parties  are  still  more  numerous,  and 
the  party  lash  by  no  means  has  the  power  that  it  has  in  England 
and  particularly  in  America.  This  is  to  a  large  extent  explained 


50  SAKURAMBO 

by  the  nature  of  the  franchise.  The  upper  house  is  appointed 
by  the  Emperor.  The  lower  house  is  elected  on  a  very  restricted 
property  suffrage.  When  it  is  understood  that  in  a  large  city  like 
Yokohama,  with  nearly  two  hundred  thousand  people,  barely  five 
per  cent,  have  any  voice  in  the  election  of  their  own  local  govern- 
ment and  not  one-half  of  that  have  anything  to  do  with  the  election 
of  a  member  to  the  Diet,  it  can  be  understood  that  the  Japanese 
Diet  is  not  in  any  sense  of  the  word  a  popular  assembly.  The 
people  at  large  have  one  striking  if  somewhat  strenuous  method 
of  showing  their  displeasure;  assassination,  which  although  very 
uncertain  in  its  action,  has  in  some  cases  a  deterrent  effect  on  push- 
ing through  a  measure  which  is  absolutely  repulsive  to  the  public  at 
large.  The  vindicator  of  the  public  rage  is  regarded  as  a  hero,  and 
though  he  may  be  hanged  a  dozen  times  over,  his  grave  is  kept  green 
and  his  spirit  appeased  by  the  offerings  of  his  admirers.  These 
assassins  make  no  effort  to  escape  and  usually  carry  a  paper  on 
their  person  setting  forth  their  reason  for  their  action  in  case  they 
should  be  cut  down  by  the  officers. 

East  and  West  therefore  have  approached  this  relation  of  the 
individual  to  the  community  from  the  same  standpoint  and  have 
solved  it  differently,  and  the  West  far  more  completely.  We 
remember  the  three  Johns  of  the  Autocrat  of  the  Breakfast  Table. 
John,  as  John  saw  him,  and  very  different  from  the  real  John; 
John  as  his  neighbours  saw  him,  very  different  from  the  first  John 
and  from  the  real  John;  John  as  his  Maker  sees  him.  Starting 
with  the  individual  fettered  John,  the  West  has  thrown  the  world 
open  to  him,  until  among  the  more  advanced  peoples  John's  John  is 
given  a  fair  .field  and  stands  free  to  use  all  his  powers  as  best  he 
may  with  all  the  tremendous  fruition  that  they  may  bring  him. 
The  only  limitation  placed  on  him  is  that  such  powers  be  not 
used  to  the  detriment  of  his  neighbours.  The  result  has  been  a 
fishing  in  strange  waters,  and  to-day  a  remarkable  feature  in  west- 
ern civilization  is  its  fundamental  homogeneity  which  is  anything 
but  related  to  its  divers  constituents,  and  due  largely  to  the  inherent 
self  restraint  of  the  race.  In  art  and  science  this  homogeneity  has 


BOSHU    WAY  51 

given  rise  to  a  cosmopolitanism  anything  but  harmful  in  this  age 
of  iron.  Herein  East  differs  from  West.  To  the  East  the  indi- 
vidual, John's  John,  is  not  of  the  slightest  importance.  His  de- 
velopment is  to  be  carried  out  within  certain  narrow  conventional 
lines.  What  conforms  to  the  norm  is  good.  What  does  not  so 
conform  is  bad.  This  of  course  crushes  out  all  originality. 
Whether  any  elasticity  has  been  left  in  the  human  mind  after  cen- 
turies of  such  training  remains  yet  to  be  seen.  Man's  only  distinc- 
tion being  that  he  is  a  thinking  brute,  imitation  and  adaptation 
are  hardly  the  limiting  qualities  of  any  race.  But  the  quality  of 
originality  needs  exercise,  like  any  other  quality  of  the  mind ;  and 
it  is  only  in  the  last  forty  years  that  Japan  has  somewhat  length- 
ened the  fetters  of  the  individual  John  to  give  him  freer  move- 
ment; for  this  must  not  only  be  through  legislation  but  through 
that  far  wider  range  governed  by  social  convention.  Private  life — 
as  our  neighbour  sees  us — is  as  well  sheltered  West  as  East.  The 
law  of  libel  is  rinding  extension,  not  diminution  of  its  scope,  among 
western  nations.  Some  of  the  episodes  however  that  find  their 
way  into  the  Japanese  press  would  hardly  find  publication  in  the 
most  reckless  yellow  journal,  not  it  can  be  imagined  through 
any  particular  delicacy  but  because  of  a  damage  suit.  There  is 
one  point  on  which  the  law  of  libel  is  very  definite,  and  that  is  in 
relation  to  the  government.  Here  punishment  is  severe  and  cer- 
tain, but  otherwise  great  leniency  is  shown  as  if  the  object  was  to 
get  the  boys  to  tell  on  each  other  so  that  their  paternal  rulers  can 
better  keep  an  eye  on  them. 

The  general  social  life  of  the  West  certainly  seems  healthier  in 
many  ways.  It  is  always  the  case  where  some  trust  is  shown  in 
the  individual.  The  essentials  of  family  life  are  quite  as  much 
hidden  and  yet  there  is  a  fuller  exchange  of  ideas  and  customs 
through  the  whole  mass  of  the  body  politic  on  a  more  intimate 
basis  than  the  relations  of  business  and  politics  can  afford.  Men 
learn  to  know  each  other  better  the  more  points  they  touch  at. 
Without  entering  in  any  way  into  the  merits  of  including  or  ex- 
cluding woman  from  general  society  it  is  a  fact  that  the  extension 


52  SAKURAMBO 

of  her  sphere  has  been  accompanied  by  a  lessening  of  the  spirit 
of  provincialism  and  clannishness,  and  their  disappearance  from 
the  sphere  of  Japanese  public  life  is  to  be  regretted.  That  the 
life  within  the  family  of  the  West  suffers  from  such  liberality  is 
much  to  be  doubted.  Filial  duty  is  as  important  to  the  West  as  to 
the  East,  although  the  West  has  long  since  stripped  the  father  of 
his  autocratic  power  in  the  household  and  refused  to  hold  the 
grown  man  in  tutelage.  One  would  think  from  the  way  this 
question  of  filial  devotion  is  often  discussed  that  western  sons 
were  mainly  occupied  in  turning  their  parents  out  of  doors,  or 
beating  them,  or  otherwise  maltreating  them.  We  have  few 
special  laws  on  this  subject,  and  where  one  of  them  is  violated  the 
perpetrator  is  quite  as  much  an  object  of  horror  to  the  community 
as  he  would  be  to  the  East.  We  do  not  recognize  the  permanent 
tutelage  of  the  son  for  that  is  incompatible  with  our  system  of 
individual  liberty  and  liability  granted  as  soon  as  man  reaches 
what  has  been  agreed  on  as  man's  estate.  As  only  up  to  that  time 
he  has  claim  on  his  father  for  support,  so  all  his  life  his  father  has 
claim  for  support  on  the  son,  and  in  the  rare  cases  where  the 
Courts  have  to  intervene  to  enforce  that  right  they  have  done  so 
emphatically.  The  father  of  the  West  cannot  enforce  that  unvary- 
ing obedience  that  the  eastern  parent  accepts  as  his  due.  It  is 
against  our  whole  system  of  life.  The  western  father  must  get 
his  son  ready  to  take  his  place  in  the  world's  battle  on  his  own 
account,  and  hence  conventional  lines  are  made  very  broad  and  the 
boy  is  given  much  more  opportunity  to  show  his  capabilities  and 
how  much  originality  is  in  him,  to  be  developed  for  his  future 
advancement.  He  does  not  want  the  boy  to  show  himself  equal  to 
the  average  that  he  sees  around  him.  He  wants  him  to  stand  high 
in  the  world.  The  restraint  is  still  there  or  should  be  there.  It 
is  well  shown  in  a  common  saying,  "  give  the  boy  plenty  of  rope." 
This  can  be  done  wisely  or  foolishly  as  is  the  case  with  all  things 
human.  In  external  deference  to  the  aged  an  eastern  household 
presents  a  very  beautiful  sight.  Not  more  so  I  think  than  can  be 
found  in  those  older  communities  of  Europe  where  parental  author- 


BOSHU    WAY  53 

ity  has  retained  much  of  its  earlier  flavour,  which  is  the  more 
worthy  of  note  as  in  the  West  filial  respect  is  a  part  of  religion 
whereas  as  in  the  East  it  is  the  whole  of  religion.  Filial  mis- 
conduct in  the  West  is  a  breach  of  religious  law.  In  the  East  it  is 
a  dereliction  against  the  Divinity  itself  and  is  regarded  as  sacrilege 
and  punished  accordingly,  and  there  is  no  point  on  which  the  Jap- 
anese law  is  more  minute  and  goes  into  greater  detail  as  to  the 
nature  of  the  punishment  than  with  crimes  of  this  class.  If  filial 
misconduct  is  such  a  rarity  in  Japan  they  have  piled  up  a  very 
complete  code  in  anticipation.  An  elaborate  structure  to  act  as  a 
preventive  which  must  have  been  based  on  intuition,  for  these  laws 
are  old  laws  and  in  existence  long  before  Japan  had  contact  with 
the  demoralizing  West. 

The  Kimuraya  is  a  delightful  stopping  place  and  Ho  jo  is 
noted  for  its  view  of  Fuji  rising  up  on  the  other  side  of  the  strait. 
My  morning's  ride  would  keep  the  mountain  pretty  constantly  in 
sight.  If  the  ride  down  the  east  coast  of  the  peninsula  had  been  a 
fine  one  there  was  a  still  more  pleasant  surprise  in  store.  There 
are  no  late  breakfast  hours  to  bother  one  at  Japanese  inns.  No 
sulky  waiters  to  divide  their  attention  between  you  and  their  slicking 
up  for  the  day,  a  secret  circumambient  hostility  because  you  take  ad- 
vantage of  God's  daylight,  disturb  their  routine,  and  start  your  day 
pretty  much  with  the  sun.  Hence  before  seven  all  the  preliminaries 
had  been  disposed  of  arid  my  men  were  ready  for  their  freight. 
The  first  half  of  the  day  was  on  the  plain  or  through  the  hills,  the 
ride  still  keeping  the  pleasing  type  of  the  afternoon  before,  shady 
lanes  and  villages  buried  in  trees.  There  were  pretty  views  across 
the  water  to  the  Sagami  peninsula  and  still  more  distant  the  blue 
outline  of  Izu.  Ahead  the  mountains  apparently  barred  the  way 
to  further  progress  in  that  direction,  the  most  prominent  being 
Nokogiriyama  or  "  saw-tooth  mountain/'  a  ridge  so  named  from 
its  regularly  indented  shape.  At  this  point  the  road  is  approaching 
the  turn  which  brings  the  western  side  of  Tokyo  bay  into  full  view. 
The  mountains  here  come  close  to  the  sea,  sometimes  leaving  barely 
room  for  the  road  to  pass,  again  cutting  it  off  entirely.  In  such 


54  SAKURAMBO 

cases  the  only  remedy  is  a  tunnel,  and  of  the  thirty  odd  found 
between  Katsuura  and  Minato  two-thirds  are  on  this  section  of 
the  road,  which  runs  along  the  sea  not  more  than  a  dozen  feet 
above  the  high  water-mark.  The  previous  night  had  been  stormy 
and  the  waters  of  the  bay  were  still  in  a  great  turmoil,  dashing 
the  spray  over  the  edge.  It  was  a  fine  ride  on  a  good  road  with 
the  cliffs  towering  far  up  overhead.  There  was  comparatively 
little  traffic.  Rest  sheds  were  conspicuous  by  their  absence.  It 
is  to  be  suspected  that  these  fine  roadways  have  more  to  do  with 
military  purposes  than  with  the  immediate  needs  of  the  country 
district  they  traverse.  Upper  Boshu  swarmed  with  soldiers,  and 
they  formed  no  little  part  of  the  wayfarers  met  on  the  road.  In 
this  part  of  the  peninsula  however  I  met  with  but  one  emblem  of 
the  powers  that  be  in  the  shape  of  a  policeman  who  was  driving  an 
offender  to  confinement.  With  his  hands  tied  behind  his  back  and 
attached  to  a  cord  some  half  a  dozen  feet  in  length  the  said  offender 
was  trotting  along  much  as  the  unconscious  pig  goes  to  market. 
It  goes  against  the  American  grain  to  see  the  genus  homo  treated 
in  this  degrading  manner.  It  is  a  common  enough  sight  in  the 
country  districts.  In  the  treaty  ports  however  the  foreign  system 
of  a  "  Black  Maria  "  is  used  to  convey  prisoners  to  and  from  a 
hearing,  and  the  sight  of  two  or  three  men  trussed  together  like 
cattle,  while  seen  at  times  is  not  a  very  common  occurrence.  Just 
why  such  desperate  measures  are  taken  with  the  average  Japanese 
criminal  is  hard  to  see,  for  once  in  the  clutches  of  the  law  he 
becomes  a  very  mild  product  and  the  sight  of  a  uniform  is  enough 
to  turn  his  gall  to  milk  and  reduce  him  to  submission.  There  is  a 
fair  amount  of  savagery  underlying  the  surface  of  the  "  Bete 
Humaine  "  and  the  Japanese  have  their  full  share  of  it,  as  is  well 
shown  in  the  encounters  between  the  ordinary  public  and  the  law- 
breakers. One  would  think  that  where  the  individual  counts  for 
so  little  in  the  community  that  the  derelict  from  the  path  of  law 
would  rush  to  extremes  in  his  encounters  with  it,  and  the  result 
would  be  a  dangerous  criminal  as  one  outside  the  pale  of  the 
community  altogether.  That  this  is  not  the  case  is  perhaps  due  to 


BOSHU    WAY  55 

the  lenity  of  the  Japanese  criminal  law,  which  imposes  less  severe 
terms  of  imprisonment  and  has  a  graduated  system  of  rebates,  so 
to  speak,  according  as  the  criminal  gives  less  trouble  in  clearing 
up  the  offence.  Hence  a  thief  when  captured  not  only  gives  a 
full  account  of  his  present  transgression  but  often  goes  into  full 
details  of  his  past  sins.  This  undoubtedly  saves  much  trouble  for 
the  police  if  not  for  the  public,  against  whom  the  offences  are  just 
as  frequent.  The  specimen  I  had  in  front  of  me  on  this  occasion — 
a  thief — and  who  doubtless  fell  on  his  knees  and  gave  in  at  once 
when  confronted  by  the  man  in  authority,  would  not  have  hesitated 
to  carve  me  into  little  bits  with  the  short  sword  which  is  the 
favourite  weapon  of  thieves,  if  I  had  caught  him  robbing  my  house. 
They  are  a  class  of  offenders  that  get  little  sympathy  from  the 
public  who  are  in  great  dread  of  them. 

The  indentations  of  the  coast  were  on  more  sweeping  lines  at 
this  section  of  the  way  but  on  reaching  Minato  the  road,  here 
embowered  in  trees,  turns  into  a  little  estuary,  the  locality  being 
very  picturesque.  No  Japanese  town  has  any  appearance  of  an- 
tiquity, but  simply  of  shabbiness.  In  fact,  they  are  not  ancient,  for 
fires  periodically  wipe  them  out.  Minato,  however,  on  the  whole 
looked  quite  new  and  shiny.  A  great  deal  of  sake  is  brewed  here 
and  there  is  an  excellent  Japanese  inn  of  the  better  class  which 
fortunately  I  found  open,  for  the  place  is  a  watering  resort  and  out 
of  season  the  inn  ordinarily  is  closed.  About  a  mile  from  Minato 
the  main  road  is  left  for  a  cart  track,  which  quickly  degenerates 
into  a  trail  leading  up  the  outlying  spurs  of  Kanozan,  the  loftiest 
part  of  the  range  as  seen  from  Yokohama.  It  is  not  much  of  a 
climb  and  the  view  a  beautiful  one,  Fuji  rising  in  all  its  snowy 
splendour  across  the  bay.  Kanozan  has  an  important  temple  on 
the  summit,  a  plateau  rather  than  summit,  for  the  mountain  is 
really  a  ridge.  On  the  eastern  side  is  a  view  over  the  cut  up 
country  to  the  east  and  south,  locally  called  the  ."  ninety-nine 
valleys."  It  is  an  exaggerated  counterpart  of  the  confused  jumble 
that  one  finds  on  the  Yokohama  side.  In  fact  this  line  of  hills 
running  across  the  base  of  Boshu  and  taking  in  the  Sagami  penin- 


56  SAKURAMBO 

sula  makes  a  section  of  Tertiary  clays  which  subsequently  have 
been  raised  above  sea  level  as  an  island  when  all  the  Tokyo  plain 
was  still  under  water.  This  peneplain  has  been  carved  into  the 
most  confused  shapes — ramifications  of  valleys  intersecting  each 
other  at  every  angle  where  the  water  courses  have  met  the  least 
resistance  to  their  power  of  erosion.  A  condition  of  affairs  not 
badly  illustrated  by  the  result  of  a  watering  pot  on  a  good-sized 
mud  pie.  The  inns  are  well  placed,  overlooking  Tokyo  Bay  and 
with  a  full  view  of  Fuji.  The  food  was  rather  primitive  but  the 
people  were  very  willing.  Four  miles  of  a  picturesque  walk  down 
the  mountain — picturesque  in  a  European  sense,  for  the  road  just 
at  the  foot  of  Kanozan  has  but  little  Japanese  in  its  surroundings — 
and  kuruma  can  be  obtained  into  Kisarazu,  the  main  local  port 
on  the  east  side  of  Tokyo  Bay.  Here  the  welcome  was  cordial 
enough,  but  it  was  very  necessary  to  make  one's  way  good,  for 
they  were  evidently  uncertain  about  foreigners  and  there  was  some 
little  delay  before  they  \vould  say  they  had  accommodation  for  the 
night.  However,  being  ensconced  behind  the  shoji,  by  a  judicious 
ignorance  of  the  native  tongue  and  a  lesson  in  English  to  the  scion 
of  the  house  who  had  ambitions  toward  one  of  the  Yokohama 
schools,  our  nationality  was  proved,  so  to  speak,  and  the  guests' 
book  was  brought  at  once,  not  a  usual  thing,  for  ordinarily  it  is 
produced  near  the  dinner  hour  in  the  evening  when  it  seems  more 
of  a  formality  than  a  necessity. 

One  of  the  first  impressions  that  is  the  gift  of  the  gods  to  the 
arriving  stranger  in  Japan  is  the  ease  with  which  he  picks  up  the 
language.  It  is  merely  a  matter  of  vocabulary.  There  are  no 
persons,  genders,  numbers,  or  inflections  to  be  grasped  with  their 
involved  combinations.  The  structure  of  the  verb  seems  simplicity 
itself.  There  is  something  of  a  hitch  in  getting  used  to  a  post 
position  instead  of  a  preposition,  but  otherwise  the  sentence  looks 
not  unlike  one  of  the  Latin  languages  or  German.  Noun,  object, 
verb.  And  so  he  rambles  through  the  land,  getting  along  tolerably 
well,  and  waxing  pretty  great  in  his  own  conceit  over  his  linguistic 
accomplishments.  If  he  does  not  stay  too  long  in  the  land  no  harm 


BOSHU    WAY  57 

has  been  done  and  the  experience  has  all  the  freshening  effect  of 
any  tonic  that  acts  more  on  mind  than  on  matter.  It  is  when 
the  period  has  been  extended  beyond  a  few  months  that  he  gets  the 
full  shock  of  the  truth,  and  sooner  if  he  wanders  away  off  the 
beaten  track  where  they  not  only  do  not  understand  him  but  do  not 
care  enough  about  foreigners  to  take  the  trouble  to  understand 
him.  In  other  words,  the  time  comes  when  he  finds  that  the 
linguistic  accomplishments  have  been  mainly  on  the  side  of  the 
native.  In  those  parts  of  the  country  frequented  by  foreigners, 
the  number  of  natives  that  are  familiar  with  English  construction 
of  sentences  is  extraordinary.  They  may  not  know  a  word  of 
English  itself  but  they  have  grasped  the  foreigner's  use  of  their 
own  words,  and  it  is  this  knowledge  of  theirs  that  enables  him  to 
make  himself  understood  so  readily  in  the  large  majority  of  cases. 
A  native  will  address  a  foreigner  in  a  way  perfectly  comprehensible 
to  the  latter  both  in  accent  or  in  use  of  words  and  addressing  one 
of  his  countrymen  will  become  at  once  incomprehensible.  He  has 
adapted  himself  to  the  foreigner's  needs,  his  first  thought  being  to 
take  the  easiest  method  of  being  understood.  Of  course  in  turning 
to  a  Japanese  he  drops  into  the  native  idiom  and  use  of  words.  If 
there  is  no  royal  road  to  learning  there  is  certainly  not  even  a 
"  first  aid  "  to  Japanese.  "  Japanese  at  a  glance  "  would  be  a  mere 
vocabulary  of  words,  for  Japanese  grammar  could  only  and  does 
only,  to  the  foreigner,  consist  in  a  lengthy  exposition  of  innumerable 
idioms.  Every  English  construction  undergoes  not  reversal  but  a 
sort  of  grammatical  earthquake,  shaking  it  into  a  tumbled  heap  of 
wrords  which,  as  they  stand,  have  no  particular  meaning  whatever. 
Given  a  collection  of  a  dozen  wrords  we  can  start  in  and  build  up 
a  fair  collection  of  sentences  from  them  by  altering  the  arrange- 
ment. This  is  very  much  the  situation  if  a  sentence  be  literally 
translated  word  for  word  from  Japanese  into  English.  It  is  often 
absolutely  without  meaning  and  we  can  suit  our  sweet  will  in 
making  very  much  what  we  please  of  the  combination.  There 
must  be  a  key,  and  fortunately  this  has  been  supplied  by  the  very 
few  who  have  penetrated  the  genius  of  this  most  difficult  of  eastern 


58  SAKURAMBO 

languages.  Only  with  one  of  the  excellent  Japanese  grammars 
written  by  foreigners  and  the  aid  of  a  Japanese  teacher  can  the 
foreigner  hope  to  make  any  impression  on  the  native  tongue. 
Unaided  efforts  are  only  too  likely  to  end  in  the  stumbling  block 
of  the  native  adaptability  and  the  adoption  of  the  lingua  franca  of 
the  country. 

There  is  no  question  here  of  entering  into  a  Japanese  family 
(not  readily  possible  for  other  reasons  of  a  purely  social  char- 
acter) and  surrounding  oneself  with  the  native  medium,  so  to 
speak.  The  eye  gives  no  aid,  for  to  read  the  language  one  must 
first  learn  several  thousand  Chinese  ideographs,  must  learn  the 
endless  readings  of  these  ideographs  as  used  by  the  Japanese  in 
combinations  and  when  standing  alone,  sometimes  taking  the 
Chinese  sound  or  the  Chinese  sound  as  pronounced  by  the  Jap- 
anese, and  again  appearing  in  the  form  of  purest  Japanese.  And 
having  grasped  this,  one  must  again  go  to  school  and  learn  a  new 
grammar  as  applied  to  the  written  language  in  distinction  from 
the  language  as  spoken  in  daily  intercourse.  Very  few  foreigners 
can  ever  hope  to  grasp  the  etiquette  of  this  tongue.  For  etiquette 
it  has.  From  highest  to  lowest  and  vice  versa  the  form  of  address 
is  so  different  as  in  itself  to  explain  the  personal  relations  and  does 
away  with  any  but  this  indirect  use  of  pronouns.  This  indirect- 
ness of  address  not  only  applies  to  the  speaker  and  immediate 
hearers  but  defines  the  relationship  of  persons  or  objects  the  sub- 
ject of  the  conversation.  Forms  of  official  address,  even  to  some 
extent  found  among  western  nations,  are  of  course  carried  to  a 
much  greater  extreme  in  a  country  where  connection  with  govern- 
ment carries  with  it  social  position  in  itself,  a  government  that 
"  hands  down  "  its  will  to  a  people  that  "  respectfully  receives." 
In  the  upper  circle  of  the  Court  a  vocabulary  and  form  of  address 
is  used  entirely  limited  to  its  narrow  membership.  Among  west- 
ern nations  there  has  always  been  to  some  extent  a  formula  for 
official  addresses  and  receptions  but  limited  to  the  occasion  of  its 
use.  The  East  possesses  its  cut  and  dried  set  of  formulas  for 
such  conditions  and  in  addition  has  carried  into  general  life  a  form 


BOSHU    WAY  59 

of  speech  marking  off  class  from  class.  Also  throughout  Japan 
can  be  found  numerous  dialects  and  in  a  still  narrower  sense  what 
can  be  called  patois,  expressions  without  any  literary  sanction  in 
form  and  often  confined  to  the  range  of  a  single  fishing  or  moun- 
tain village.  There  is  perhaps  here  a  distinction  from  the  use  of 
the  term  "  dialect  "  as  used  in  the  West.  The  crystallized  form  of 
the  written  language  (its  Chinazation,  analogous  to  the  Latiniza- 
tion  of  our  fifteenth  century  literature)  prevents  the  development 
of  a  dialect  literature  such  as  exists  in  all  European  languages. 
But  the  divergence  between  Tokyo  and  Kyoto,  north  and  south,  is 
radical  enough  to  form  a  dialect  in  the  colloquial,  and  where  it 
has  been  reduced  to  literary  form  represents  a  true  literature.  A 
Japanese  can  in  general  terms  distinguish  the  particular  habitat  of 
his  countrymen,  just  as  an  American  can  quickly  tell  the  average 
"  down-east  Yankee,"  the  Southerner,  the  man  w7ho  lives  in  the 
Mississippi  valley,  and  on  the  Pacific  coast.  As  for  patois  it  is  not 
uncommon  when  travelling  with  a  Japanese  to  find  him  stumped 
on  occasions  in  some  mountain  hamlet  by  local  idioms,  although 
not  more  than  a  dozen  miles  away  lies  the  large  district  town  which 
limits  itself  only  to  some  dialectical  forms  of  expression.  Another 
difficulty  lies  in  pronunciation.  Many  foreigners  living  in  Japan 
speak  Japanese  as  their  native  tongue.  They  were  born  and 
brought  up  in  the  country.  But  there  is  a  distinctive  timbre  about 
the  Japanese  voice  that  marks  the  native,  and  hearing  without 
seeing  the  speaker,  a  foreigner  usually  betrays  himself  by  the  lack 
of  this  timbre.  As  to  the  foreigners  who  have  grasped  the  genius 
of  the  language,  who  have  a  full  and  complete  knowledge  of  its 
different  ramifications,  they  can  be  numbered  on  one's  fingers,  and 
curiously  enough  are  nearly  all  immigrants.  Outside  knowledge 
of  Japanese,  the  grammar  of  the  Japanese  language  has  been  given 
to  the  western  world,  not  by  those  one  would  think  most  capable 
of  doing  the  work,  but  by  a  set  of  scholars  who  have  had  to  build 
the  structure  from  the  ground  up ;  to  whom  the  language  was  an 
accomplishment  not  an  accident  of  birth. 

It  will  not  do  however  to  think  that  Japanese  has  all  the  diffi- 


60  SAKURAMBO 

culties  to  itself.  Our  English  tongTie  which  has  cut  loose  from 
most  of  the  complexities  of  inflections,  and  reduced  itself  to  the 
simplest  form  compatible  with  clearness,  still  has  enough  bristles 
left  to  make  it  a  very  tough  morsel.  We  do  not  appreciate  this 
until  the  occasion  arises  to  prove  our  boast  as  to  how  easy  English 
is  as  a  language.  "  Just  talk  straight  ahead."  We  have,  in  com- 
mon with  most  other  European  nations,  an  alphabet  of  twenty-six 
letters  to  express  the  sounds  found  in  the  language.  That  is,  we 
fondly  think  so  until  examination  shows  that  the  number  is  nearer 
three  hundred,  a  number  corresponding  to  the  forms  of  the  Jap- 
anese hiragana  syllabary.  Taking  small  letters  and  capitals,  writ- 
ten and  printed,  old  script,  black  letter,  and  German  script  which 
js  so  often  quoted  as  to  be  necessary  to  a  student  of  English 
literature,  this  latter  number  can  be  reached  without  any  difficulty, 
and  italics  and  more  fanciful  forms  common  to  our  printers'  fonts 
can  be  fairly  added  to  swell  the  list.  To  us  of  course  the  relation- 
ship between  these  forms  seems  so  evident  that  we  say  with 
perfect  sincerity  that  the  sounds  of  our  alphabet  are  expressed  by 
the  twenty-six  symbols;  but  to  a  Japanese,  totally  unfamiliar  at 
the  start  with  these  symbols,  this  is  not  the  case,  and  it  is  quite  a 
shock  in  its  way,  after  having  impressed  the  printed  symbol  b  on 
the  neophyte  to  be  asked  what  the  form  B  represents,  or  B  a 
form  often  used  in  heading  chapters,  and  a  host  of  other  b's  as  the 
case  may  be.  Monograms  are  often  a  puzzle  to  ourselves,  as  is 
also  the  ornamental  script  commonly  used  in  seals.  For  words, 
English  literature  requires  but  a  small  glossary  until  we  get 
behind  the  fifteenth  century,  but  in  that  time  there  has  been  a 
wide  range  for  change  in  orthography  and  printing,  not  only  new 
words  and  new  uses  of  words  but  new  symbols.  There  are  plenty 
of  old  books  still  living  a  hale  existence  in  the  libraries — some  of 
us  prefer  these  hardy  old  relics — not  enough  called  for  to  reprint 
in  our  modern  style  and  still  showing  their  old  dress  of  seventy 
years  ago  with  fs  for  s's  and  final  c's  in  places  long  since  disused. 
Many  still  use  the  long  f  for  ^  in  writing. 

Change  of  words  with  time,  change  of  meaning  and  of  spelling 


BOSHU    WAY  61 

with  time,  are  unavoidable  difficulties  for  which  the  glossary  is  the 
only  medicine,  but  our  modern  tongue  offers  plenty  without  going 
back  to  hunt  for  them.  For  instance  homonyms.  These  are  so 
superabundant  in  Japanese  that  it  is  the  Chinese  ideograph  that 
makes  the  written  language  intelligible.  The  neophyte  simply 
dipping  his  feet  in  the  ocean  of  Japanese  writing  and  printing 
quickly  learns  this  fact  and  turns  to  the  ideograph  to  read  the 
kcna  meaning  printed ,  beside  it.  In  English,  as  compared  with 
Japanese,  such  cases  are  rare,  but  still  they  exist  in  number 
enough  to  be  troublesome.  The  context  shows  us  at  once  the 
meaning  to  be  taken  but  to  anyone  less  familiar  with  the  language 
they  are  a  very  serious  stumbling  block,  especially  the  nearer  they 
stand  to  being  a  keyword  in  the  sentence.  As  with  dear  used  in 
the  sense  of  cost,  dear  as  a  term  of  affection,  and  deer  an  animal, 
this  last  named  involving  the  long  forgotten  days  of  the  dreaded 
spelling  book.  Spelling  and  the  juvenile  equivalent  for  swearing 
and  vigorous  switching  were  too  common  concomitants  not  so  many 
years  ago.  The  world  has  grown  less  strenuous  to  its  progeny  in 
these  latter  days,  for  less  than  twenty-five  years  ago  in  many  of 
our  schools  we  got  a  personal  and  practical  application  of  the 
East  in  the  shape  of  the  bamboo  cane.  But  all  the  verbal  diffi- 
culties are  slight  compared  to  the  pronunciation  of  English.  Here 
even  foreigners  akin  to  our  own  race  admit  the  difficulties  piled 
up  with  almost  every  sentence  they  seek  to  use.  The  dictionary 
is  a  collection  of  words  that  in  arbitrariness  rivals  the  Chinese 
ideograph,  for  all  our  vowels  have  several  sounds  and  no  accents 
or  indication  to  show  which  particular  sound  applies  to  the  word 
under  consideration ;  and  diphthongs  and  triphthongs  add  their  quota 
to  the  merry  confusion  of  the  fifteen  different  simple  vowel  sounds. 
For  instance — receive,  neighbour,  height:  pierce,  piebald:  mould, 
mound:  my,  myriad,  myrrh:  tub,  tureen,  true:  father,  fat,  fair, 
afterzvard:  every,  even:  pine,  pin:  etc.,  etc.  Then  there  is  elision, 
slurring,  and  silent  letters.  Difficult  as  these  vagaries  of  the  alpha- 
bet are  to  other  westerners,  they  however  recall  familiarities  in 
their  own  languages  that  offers  some  aid  in  surmounting  the 


62  SAKURAMBO 

peculiarities  of  English  pronunciation,  but  to  a  Japanese  using 
a  syllabary  and  not  an  alphabet  these  difficulties  are  enormously 
increased.  It  is  really  surprising  therefore  how  widespread  a 
knowledge  of  English  is  found  in  travelling  through  the  country. 
Most  of  it  is  of  a  very  haphazard  character,  a  few  words  picked 
up  by  peasants  who  have  lived  on  the  sugar  plantations  of  Hawaii 
or  in  the  western  states  of  America,  or  by  "  boys  "  who  have  been 
in  service  in  the  foreign  settlements.  There  is  a  much  better 
quality  of  English  found  among  Japanese  who  have  lived  in 
England  or  in  the  United  States,  apart  from  the  Japanese  com- 
munities, and  among  Japanese  of  the  educated  classes  it  is  spoken 
with  remarkable  accuracy  of  grammar  if  not  accent.  It  is  an  occa- 
sional experience  to  meet  with  an  English  speaking  Japanese  who 
speaks  without  a  trace  of  foreign  accent,  and  these  cases  have 
been  caught  young,  so  to  speak,  and  brought  up  abroad  or  under 
foreign  influence.  The  general  impression  one  gets  however  is, 
that  as  a  nation  the  Japanese  are  no  mean  linguists.  On  asking 
the  question,  most  of  them  seem  to  think  that  the  continental 
languages — French,  German,  Italian,  and  Spanish — are  easier  to 
learn  than  English.  It  is  not  the  involved  declensions  that  stagger 
them  so  much  as  pronunciation.  The  nebulous  quality  of  the 
alphabet.  Incidentally  foreigners  will  often  be  found  who  say 
that  they  can  understand  the  English  as  spoken  by  Americans 
more  readily  than  when  spoken  by  the  English  themselves.  The 
former  speak  more  in  monotone;  the  latter  accent  words 
much  more  sharply,  throwing  the  rest  of  the  sentence  in  shadow. 
According  to  the  Japanese,  among  foreigners  there  are  a  number 
that  speak  correct  grammatical  Japanese,  and  a  great  many  who 
speak  the  language  fluently  with  more  or  less  correctness.  They 
usually  shake  their  heads  as  to  its  pronunciation.  The  general 
medium  of  exchange  between  native  and  foreigner  is  the  "  lingua 
franca  "  as  it  can  be  called,  a  Japanese  with  English  syntax  and 
sprinkled  with  Japanese  idioms  which  will  not  stand  transposition 
and  must  be  learned  by  heart. 

In  connection  with  language  there  is  a  subject  that  here  pre- 


B6SHU    WAY  63 

sents  some  very  interesting  features,  and  that  is  as  to  Japanese 
literature.  It  is  difficult  to  believe  that  such  a  gulf  exists  between 
art  and  literature  as  on  the  surface  appears  to  exist  in  this  case. 
As  to  art,  the  West  recognizes  the  high  standing  of  the  Japanese 
in  most  features  and  its  supremacy  in  some.  Western  Catholicity 
cannot  be  better  instanced  than  by  the  tribute  it  has  spontaneously 
given  to  eastern  art.  In  fact,  it  is  the  keynote  of  our  western 
civilization  to  accept  the  good — or  what  it  conceives  to  be  the 
good — no  matter  where  found.  And  such  appreciation  has  a  very 
\vide  range.  There  is  less  cant  about  this  side  of  our  character 
than  any  other.  The  beautiful  features  of  the  intricate  scroll 
work  carving  such  as  is  found  among  a  truly  savage  race  as  the 
Maoris  of  New  Zealand  give  rise  to  a  genuine  not  a  fictitious  or 
curious  pleasure.  Only  those  who  have  access  to  it  can  state  why 
Japanese  literature  has  not  been  able  to  take  its  stand  side  by  side 
with  Japanese  art.  In  these  days  the  western  world  is  going  back 
of  the  race  feature  of  any  man's  \vork.  It  is  striving,  so  to  speak, 
to  find  a  formula  to  which  everything  mental,  moral,  and  physical, 
is  to  be  reduced.  To  find  the  ultimate  natural  basis  on  which 
phenomena  of  any  character  rest,  and  according  as  the  particular 
instance  conforms  more  or  less  closely  to  standard  to  judge  it 
entirely  apart  from  the  factor  of  personal  or  national  equation. 
Excluding  subjects  whose  facts  must  ultimately  rest  on  a  purely 
scientific  basis  Japanese  literature  covers  the  whole  gamut  from  the 
heaviest  and  hardest  theology  to  the  lightest  novel.  There  are 
foreigners  and  Japanese  well  able,  not  only  from  command  of 
language  but  from  high  literary  qualifications,  to  translate  the 
masterpieces  of  Japanese  prose  and  poetry  into  the  European 
languages.  The  instances  of  such  translation  are  very  scattered 
and  strange  to  say  have  been  mainly  directed  to  that  form  which  is 
the  most  difficult  for  foreigners  to  appreciate — the  poetry,  of  which 
there  are  charming  examples  in  English  dress.  A  most  difficult 
form  of  translation,  for  Japanese  poetry  is  particularly  a  matter  of 
form.  There  is  one  branch  of  it,  the  Hokku  or  Haika,  almost 
built  on  a  Chinese  basis.  It  forms  a  sort  of  perpetual  motion 


64  SAKURAMBO 

machine.  It  leaves  the  development  of  the  thought  in  obscurity 
and  enables  a  literature  of  commentaries  without  end  to  spring  up 
over  the  dead  bones,  as  in  the  controversy  over  "  Bill  Stumps,  his 
mark."  It  must  be  confessed  that  in  its  original  form  the  western 
mind  cannot  take  much  interest  in  such  a  production  as  the  oft 
cited, 

"  Asagao  ni 

Tsurube  torarete, 

Morai-mizu !  " 

which  Professor  Chamberlain  translates :  "  Having  had  my  well- 
bucket  taken  away  by  the  convolvuli — gift  water !  "  If  the  reader 
feels  unable  to  solve  the  whole  of  the  really  beautiful  idea  con- 
cealed in  these  few  words  from  his  inner  consciousness,  he  can 
find  it  in  the  Professor's  paper  on  Basho  in  the  Transactions  of 
the  Asiatic  Society  of  Japan,  Vol.  XXX.  Many  examples  are 
there  elucidated.  The  question,  however,  rises  in  the  mind  of  the 
foreign  reader  how  much  of  these  beautiful  translations  from  the 
Japanese  we  really  owe  to  the  translation  in  developing  the  thought 
of  the  original.  To  us  conundrums  and  acrostics  and  word  puzzles 
have  their  place.  But  not  as  literature.  Literature  is  complete- 
ness of  thought  and  its  expression  in  pleasing  form  according  to 
more  or  less  elastic  canons  of  taste.  The  Literature  of  Power  as 
De  Quincey  called  it,  as  distinguished  from  the  Literature  of 
Knowledge,  cannot  depend  on  obscurity  of  meaning. 

Japanese  poetry  has  literally  been  piled  up  by  the  ton  but  its 
appearance  in  foreign  form  is  rather  scanty.  That  of  prose  is 
still  less.  Essays,  novels,  folklore,  memoirs,  description  of  man- 
ners, dress  and  customs,  all  the  little  minutiae  of  Japanese  life, 
abound ;  and  the  description  of  Japanese  life  and  manners  as  seen 
through  foreign  eyes  is  complete  and  detailed,  but  very  seldom 
has  the  native  spoken  for  himself.  Scattered  fragments  of  Jour- 
nals, of  Travels,  and  very  scattered  fragments  of  the  "  Hizaku- 
rige  "  (Shank's  mare),  by  Jippensha  Ikku,  the  Japanese  Rabelais 
so  called,  are  found  in  essays  often  devoted  to  general  subjects.  I 
suppose  we  are  to  be  considered  fortunate  that  the  idea  came  into 


BOSHU    WAY  65 

the  head  of  Sir  Thomas  LTrquhart  and  old  Peter  Motteux  to  trans- 
late the  great  French  master  for  we  have  grown  too  nice  in  these 
latter  days,  or  perhaps  our  fabric  is  a  little  more  worn  out  and 
our  modern  Babylon  cannot  stand  the  push  of  coarser  Nature. 
Much  of  Japanese  literature  is  freely  denounced  as  pornographic. 
All  literatures  are  more  or  less  so,  and  at  times  the  greatest  artists 
fairly  wallow  in  the  mire.  In  fact,  man  is  many  sided,  and  if 
*'  he  strikes  the  stars  with  his  lofty  head  "  his  feet  on  the  contrary 
get  in  some  very  queer  holes,  but  the  one-sided  man  is  not  the 
whole  man,  and  expurgated  copies  of  our  great  authors  are  fit 
equipment  for  Sunday-schools  and  the  use  of  children  but  not  for 
libraries  and  grown  men.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  the  indecencies  of 
Rabelais,  of  Shakespeare,  of  Cervantes,  of  Sterne,  or  of  the  Irish 
Dean,  never  made  a  lewd  or  immoral  man ;  which  is  far  more 
than  can  be  said  of  some  of  the  modern  analytical  society  novels 
and  of  the  irretrievably  vicious  suggestive  literature  which  is  so 
prevalent  to-day.  To  go  through  the  world  with  one's  eyes  on 
heaven  while  desirable  is  no  defence  against  the  wicked  who  lay 
traps  for  one's  feet. 

After  all  this  question  is  one  not  only  of  an  Age  but  of  a 
Nation,  and  the  term  "pornographic  "  has  a  range  as  wide  as 
nations.  Judging  by  externals  the  most  artistic  peoples  are  the 
most  human.  Perhaps  their  very  kinship  to  Nature  makes  her 
natural  to  them.  Hence  the  Latin  peoples  will  give  a  very  dif- 
ferent interpretation  to  the  term  "  pornographic  "  than  the  people 
of  the  North ;  not  that  there  is  any  difference  intrinsically  but  it 
lies  in  the  expression.  The  less  clothes  a  man  wears,  the  broader 
his  smile.  Now  man  is  not  any  more  moral  for  suppression.  He 
is  more  hypocritical  and  it  is  no  great  boast  to  feel,  as  Taine  says, 
that  Pecksniff  is  thoroughly  English  even  as  Tartuffe  is  thoroughly 
French.  If  art  and  morality  had  any  intrinsic  connection  then  the 
western  Anglo-Saxon  who  puts  trousers  on  Apollo  and  denounces 
Longfellow's  "  Launching  of  the  Ship  "  is  the  artist.  But  the 
world  at  large  is  hardly  likely  to  admit  any  such  conclusion,  and 
statistics  of  the  divorce  court  would  hardly  support  the  contention 

5 


66  SAKURAMB6 

3f  supra-morality.  Now  in  saying  that  the  translations  from  Jap- 
anese literature  are  limited,  we  are  not  confining  the  question  to  the 
narrower  limits  of  what  is  acceptable  to  the  more  restricted  taste 
of  the  Anglo-Saxon  nations.  The  statement  applies  equally  to 
all  European  languages.  As  Japanese  art  has  been  studied  and 
lauded  all  through  the  West,  so  the  field  of  Japanese  literature  has 
been  as  studiously  neglected,  which  is  the  more  remarkable  if  the 
catholicity  of  western  taste  be  considered.  There  is  not  here  the 
limitation  of  the  eastern  mind,  for  limitation  it  seems  to  be. 
Everything  of  practical  value  is  eagerly  accepted.  Books  of 
Science  and  of  practical  Philosophy,  the  range  of  the"  Literature  of 
Power  "  has  been  freely  translated  for  the  use  of  Japanese  stu- 
dents; but  with  European  art,  poetry,  and  general  literature,  the 
Japanese  has  no  touch.  Here  he  is  the  true  Oriental;  unchanged 
and  unchanging  within  the  circle  of  his  own  civilization  and  in  that 
steadily  revolving  around  the  old  centre  laid  down  ages  ago. 
With  earth's  eyes  fastened  on  the  deeds  of  his  ancestors  as  his 
soul's  eyes  are  fastened  on  the  shades  of  those  ancestors.  The 
western  standard  is  here  far  the  safer  to  follow  and  by  it  we  must 
judge  that  there  has  been  found  no  Japanese  Shakespeare  or 
Moliere,  no  Dante  or  Milton  or  Goethe,  no  Boccaccio,  Ariosto, 
Cervantes,  Fielding,  Smollett,  Dickens,  Thackeray,  Balzac,  Flau- 
bert, or  George  Sand,  to  paint  Japanese  life  as  these  masters  have 
painted  English,  French,  Italian,  Spanish,  and  German  life;  no 
Montaigne  to  entertain  with  his  garrulous  geniality;  and  finally, 
no  Rabelais  to  get  us  through  this  world  of  trouble,  drowning  its 
discords  in  an  Homeric  peal  of  laughter  and  teaching  us,  without 
cynicism,  to  make  merry  over  its  defects  and  make  the  best  of  its 
opportunities. 

At  the  time  I  speak  of  there  was  no  direct  service  across  the 
bay  from  Kisarazu  to  Yokohama.  I  had  therefore  to  return  to 
Tokyo.  From  distrust  we  had  passed  to  the  greatest  affability, 
and  the  whole  inn  was  present  to  say  "  sayonara  "  the  next  morn- 
ing. With  a  towel,  a  book,  and  some  kwashi,  and  most  important 
two  large  slabs  of  wood,  I  had  quite  an  armful  in  addition  to  the 


BOSHU    WAY  67 

luggage,  and  they  took  the  trouble  to  get  me  off  promptly  for 
Kisarazu  is  a  large  place,  the  inn  what  we  would  call  a  commercial 
inn,  and  they  had  a  houseful  to  get  rid  of  that  morning.  The 
start  was  made  by  kuruma,  and  after  plunging  through  the  lanes 
of  the  town  we  came  out  on  the  edge  of  the  bay.  Here  there  was 
no  sign  of  boat  or  wharf  or  anything  but  water.  Some  distance 
out  were  lying  a  few  sampans,  and  at  least  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
away  was  a  tiny  steamer. 

I  expected  some  sort  of  a  move  on  the  part  of  the 
sampans,  but  instead  my  kurumaya  plunged  boldly  into  the 
water,  and  started  apparently  for  Yokohama  direct.  On  we 
plunged  slowly  through  the  soft  silt,  and  it  was  soon  evident  that 
he  was  making  for  one  of  the  sampans  anchored  some  hundred  and 
fifty  yards  from  the  shore.  Quite  a  little  procession  was  now 
directing  its  way  thitherward.  A  line  of  kurumas  was  following 
me,  and  by  the  "  roadside  "  were  pedestrians,  men  and  women,  their 
kimonos  tucked  up  to  the  middle  and  carefully  picking  their  way 
among  the  sea  shells  strewed  along  the  bottom.  On  reaching  the 
scow  the  water  was  nearly  up  to  the  floor  of  the  kuruma.  At  this 
point  one  of  the  before-mentioned  slabs  of  wood  was  consigned 
to  the  kuriimc.ya,  with  "  mo  go  sen/'  and  he  took  himself  off  smil- 
ing. The  other  slab  was  destined  for  the  boatman.  The  proces- 
sion followed  on,  the  scow  being  gradually  poled  out  as  the  tide 
went  down,  until  we  were  quite  a  distance  from  the  shore  and  per- 
ceptibly nearer  the  little  steamer. 

This  side  of  Tokyo  Bay  is  very  shallow  near  the  land 
and  a  rise  of  a  few  inches  covers  no  little  amount  of  plane 
surface.  The  last  shore  was  a  long  one  and  the  late-comers 
reached  us  rather  damp.  After  more  than  an  hour  spent  at 
this  elastic  anchorage  we  were  finally  "  complet "  and  pushed 
off  for  the  ocean  greyhound  "  Fukugawa  Maru."  One  could 
not  help  thinking  what  would  be  the  result  if  this  trip  is  made 
in  the  reverse  direction  and  the  kurumas  ran  short  or  did  not 
appear  at  Kisarazu.  A  foreigner  would  have  to  camp  on  the  sam- 
pan until  the  kurumaya  with  his  indefinite  sense  of  time  (of  other 


68  SAKURAMBO 

people)  came  to  his  aid,  or  else  take  off  his  "  breeks  "  and  appear 
'"  au  nature!."  European  undergarments  are  hardly  of  a  model 
to  meet  such  contingencies. 

In  somewhat  less  than  three  hours  the  steamer  was  to  land 
us  at  the  Ryogokubashi  in  Tokyo,  a  speed  which,  although  by  no 
means  swift,  was  less  exasperating  than  on  a  previous  occasion, 
when  coming  from  Shimoda,  the  "  county  town  "  of  Izu,  I  had 
taken  thirteen  hours.  Japanese  coasting  steamers  are  not  a  joy 
forever.  After  struggling  through  one  of  the  side  plates  which  is 
swung  back,  and  denting  one's  hat  and  temper  in  the  operation,  a 
low  cabin  is  entered  bare  of  everything  but  matting  and  a  narrow 
ladder  which  leads  to  a  very  small  hatch  and  the  deck.  Most  of 
these  little  steamers  carry  two  boxes  on  deck,  one  of  which  at  least 
is  available  for  passengers.  I  advisedly  say  box  for  they  are  not 
more  than  5  x  3  feet  and  little  more  than  three  feet  high.  Pas- 
sengers of  course  provide  their  own  food  if  the  length  of  the 
voyage  calls  for  it.  The  bento  or  lunch  box  is  an  almost  universal 
institution  in  Japan.  The  dining  car  is  strictly  an  importation. 
The  food  in  some  cases  explains  the  vital  statistics  of  the  Empire. 
Japanese  fruit  is  not  good  under  the  most  favourable  circum- 
stances, the  pear  and  the  peach  being  the  \vorst  offenders.  The 
pear  is  to  be  tabooed  on  all  and  every  occasion.  Either  the  name 
or  the  fruit  is  a  hideous  caricature.  The  peach  is  sometimes  fairly 
good — for  a  Japanese  peach — but  as  the  native  often  eats  it,  is  an 
atrocity.  On  the  occasion  to  which  I  refer,  coming  from  Shimoda, 
one  of  my  fellow  passengers  brought  on  a  bundle  of  the  native 
peaches  for  his  amusement  and  sustenance.  As  one  rolled  out  at 
my  feet  it  gave  me  an  opportunity  to  inspect  it  when  returning  it 
to  him.  It  was  absolutely  green  and  hard.  Eight  of  these  he 
consumed  between  Shimoda  and  Tokyo,  and  perhaps  more  at  times 
when  not  under  observation.  He  knew  nothing  of  the  affecting 
mishap  to  "  Johnny  Jones  and  his  sister  Sue,  them  two  "  which  was 
just  as  well  for  his  peace  of  mind.  Slipping  close  by  the  old 
Shimbashi  forts  the  Fukugawa  Maru  entered  the  Sumida  River 
and  soon  put  us  on  shore  at  the  slip  near  the  bridge.  I  had  re- 


BOSHU    WAY  69 

turned  in  good  time  for  the  azalea  blossoms  at  Oktibo — a  suburb  of 
Tokyo — and  it  was  night  before  I  once  more  reached  my  head- 
quarters. During  my  absence  I  had  had  a  visitor  in  the  shape  of 
the  dorobo  or  thief,  and  he  had  been  regulating  the  distribution 
of  the  goods  of  this  world  on  his  own  socialistic  principles  and  with 
small  regard  to  the  wishes  of  the  normal  owner.  The  fact  is 
worth  mentioning  in  connection  with  a  curious  superstition  of  this 
facetious  fraternity.  They  believe  that  if  they  befoul  the  place 
selected  for  their  exploit  and  cover  it  over  with  a  tub  the  people 
of  the  house  will  be  held  fast  by  the  god  of  sleep.  Hence  the 
visits  of  such  gentry  call  up  an  amount  of  wrath  that  would  give 
spice  to  the  interview  if  they  were  caught  at  the  time.  Japanese 
housekeepers  are  careful  not  to  leave  any  of  their  tarai  or  tubs 
lying  around  so  as  not  to  offer  any  facilities  for  the  performance 
of  this  curious  rite,  although  it  is  much  to  be  doubted  if  any  thief 
is  really  deterred  by  his  inability  to  carry  it  out  with  all  its 
formalities. 


Ill 


IWASHIRO  WAY 

"  Cerchiamo  la  bonta,  la  virtu,  1'entusiasmo,  la  passione  che  riempira 
la  nostra  anima,  la  fede  che  calmera  le  nostra  inquietudine,  1'idea 
che  difenderemo  con  tutto  il  nostro  coraggio  1'opera  a  cui  ci  votere- 
mo,  la  causa  per  cui  moriremo  con  gioia." — Romanzi  della  Rosa. 

Anyone  who  comes  to  Japan  to  surround  himself  with  an- 
tiquity is  doomed  to  grievous  disappointment.  If  there  is  a  coun- 
try that  has  the  stamp  of  external  newness  on  it  is  "  the  Central 
land  of  Reed  Plains."  Not  that  there  are  lacking  hoary  monu- 
ments of  antiquity,  such  as  the  temples  at  Nara,  at  Kamakura,  the 
various  Daibutsu,  and  even  such  evidences  of  a  more  remote  past 
as  dolmens.  Ancient  monuments  are  to  be  found  to  some  extent, 
but  they  are  lost  in  an  oasis  of  wooden  houses  which  have  no  mark 
of  age  on  them  but  shabbiness.  Much  of  Japanese  antiquity  as 
you  see  it  is  a  gross  fraud.  Stones  in  the  cemeteries  take  on  a 
mouldy  and  moss-grown  appearance  in  the  lapse  of  twenty-five 
years.  A  new  house  or  temple  in  a  half  a  dozen  years  looks  as 
weather-beaten  as  if  it  had  stood  there  for  a  century.  Places  are 
indeed  ancient  and  place  names  in  some  cases  figure  in  the  earliest 
of  their  chronicles  dating  from  the  eighth  century,  but  nothing  is 
left  but  the  names.  The  present  is  its  heir.  The  reason  for  this 
is  fire.  Even  if  structures  for  secular  use,  built  of  wood,  could 
have  stood  the  test  of  time,  this  element  would  probably  have  wiped 
them  out,  so  widespread  being  its  range  that  the  average  life  of  a 
house  in  Tokyo  is  put  at  less  than  a  dozen  years.  Although  there 
is  plenty  of  building  stone  they  make  but  little  use  of  it,  the  usual 
explanation  being  the  prevalence  of  earthquakes.  It  is  noticeable 
however  that  such  structures  as  were  built  of  stone — Nagoya 
Castle  for  instance — admirably  withstood  the  great  Gifu  earth- 
quake and  no  material  damage  has  ever  been  reported  to  foreign 
built  houses.  The  Japanese  are  losing  their  timidity  in  this 

70 


IWASHIRO    WAY  71 

respect,  brick  coming  into  use ;  and,  as  in  a  number  of  other  direc- 
tions, what  was  needed  being  the  initiative  from  the  outside  to 
show  them  the  way.  It  is  only  fair  to  say  that  a  twenty-two 
storied  "  skyscraper  "  would  never  become  popular  in  the  country, 
either  as  an  investment  or  as  a  neighbour.  Now  the  lack  of 
antiquity  in  Japanese  colour  is  very  much  the  reverse  of  Europe 
where  age  impresses  itself  "  en  bloc."  With  all  due  respect  it  is 
quite  feasible  to  find  in  Christian  Rome  monuments  outdating 
the  temples  of  Nara  by  centuries.  But  in  addition  whole  districts 
have  a  hoary  life.  The  Italian  and  Spanish  Ghettos,  the  Latin 
quarter  of  Paris,  have  no  counterparts  in  Japan.  An  old  Spanish 
city  like  Toledo  fairly  shows  the  old  bones  from  which  it  has  been 
constructed  and  a  Moorish  palace,  perhaps  later  the  Hall  of  the 
Templars,  will  still  house  a  multitude  unconscious  of  the  pas' 
frowning  down  on  them  from  some  capital,  or  arch,  or  groining. 

There  is  a  touch  of  fellowship  in  the  homage  both  East  and 
West  pays  to  the  places  associated  with  its  great  minds.  In  these 
present  times  the  wave  of  such  feeling  is  in  full  force,  and  if  a  few 
years  earlier  it  might  have  spared  the  old  Tabard  Inn  of  South- 
vvark  to  stand  as  a  national  monument.  Such  work  must  spring 
from  the  heart  of  the  people.  Official  support  is  too  likely  to  take 
into  consideration  the  politics  not  the  merits  of  the  candidate  to 
such  honour.  There  is  one  feature  of  Japanese  literary  life  that 
fosters  this  preservation  of  detail  of  the  lives  of  some  of  their 
literary  men.  Every  literary  man  of  eminence  had  his  disciples 
and  it  is  their  reverence  that  has  preserved  all  the  little  details 
of  the  master's  life.  But  it  must  be  understood  that  their  system 
did  not  favour  originality.  A  man's  work  must  be  based  on  a 
certain  classical  norm,  without  interest  in  itself  as  an  instance  of 
evolution.  As  it  conformed  to  the  norm  it  was  a  thing  of  beauty, 
as  it  lapsed  it  was  to  be  regretted  and  cast  into  outer  darkness. 
A  teacher's  life,  thus  surrounded  by  these  watchful  disciples,  was  a 
continual  illustration  of  his  doctrines.  As  a  rule  they  practised 
what  they  preached.  But  as  they  subordinated  themselves  to  a 
formula,  so  they  lost  much  in  personality.  They  are  rarely  off 


7.2  SAKURAMB6 

guard  ;  usually  on  exhibition.  Such  an  occasional  irregular  char- 
acter as  Jippensha  or  Hokusai  gives  a  sense  of  relief.  The  Jap- 
anese are  not  so  tender  to  some  other  symbols  of  the  past.  At 
the  fall  of  the  Shogunate  the  land  was  dotted  with  the  castles  of 
the  daimyo.  These  were  all  given  up  and  passed  into  the  hands  of 
the  government.  Against  modern  artillery  the  great  majority 
were  worthless  hulks,  more  dangerous  to  those  taking  shelter  in 
them  than  to  any  assailant.  Just  why  these  picturesque  remnants 
of  a  bygone  age  should  be  wiped  off  the  surface  of  the  earth  is 
hard  to  see;  and  yet  they  were,  and  so  effectually  that  one  'can 
travel  through  the  land  without  seeing  a  sign  of  them.  Occasion- 
ally a  bit  of  stone  wall  perched  on  a  slope  outside  a  village,  and 
which  by  a  suspicious  sweeping  line  on  the  corner  recalls  some 
old  Japanese  print,  and  shows  where  only  forty  years  ago  such  a 
structure  represented  the  governing  power  in  the  land.  Now 
antiquity  in  the  abstract  is  just  as  pleasing  as  antiquity  in  the 
concrete.  I  do  not  know  but  that  the  intervals  spent  in  rambling 
through  the  old  quarters  of  Italian,  French,  German,  and  English 
towns,  without  any  particular  archaeological  lion  in  view,  are  the 
pleasantest  features  of  travelling.  They  are  the  idle  moments  of 
sightseeing.  When  we  are  viewing  some  particular  spot — house 
or  place — where  an  important  event  of  history  took  place,  the 
mind  is  or  ought  to  be  more  or  less  on  strain.  We  are  at  school, 
so  to  speak,  for  the  time  being.  But  when  the  attention  is  not  so 
concentrated ;  when  we  are  simply  placed  in  such  a  medium,  as 
for  instance,  the  ancient  canals  of  Venice,  or  a  row  of  the  square- 
timbered  houses  of  Shrewsbury,  or  a  sixteenth  century  corner  hid- 
den away  in  the  ecclesiastical  quarter  of  Rouen;  then  the  very 
diffusion  of  our  attention,  its  scattered  range,  removes  all  element 
of  strain  and  leaves  behind  simply  pleasurable  interest.  It  is  the 
difference  between  the  burning  lens  and  the  prism.  The  Tower  of 
London  and  Westminster  Abbey  are  of  overpowering  interest,  and 
at  them  we  go  guide-book  in  hand  for  the  good  of  our  minds  and 
souls.  The  old  inn  at  Ludlow^-the  Feathers — arouses  a  much 
milder  interest.  We  need  no  guide-book  and  concentrate  our 


IWASHIRO    WAY  73 

attention  on  chops,  potatoes,  and  a  tankard  of  ale,  and  find  the  time 
passes  anything  but  slowly  in  recalling  the  old  and  varied  life  of 
the  inn  in  the  days  of  yore,  the  pleasant  and  profitable  picture  of 
the  life  of  the  past  that  it  has  seen. 

Although  his  journey  to  the  North  may  take  the  traveller  half 
way  across  the  city  of  Tokyo — which  has  been  a  great  city  since 
the  seventeenth  century — he  meets  writh  no  such  interest  on  the 
way.  Only  one-quarter  of  the  town,  the  surroundings  af  the  Im- 
perial palace,  presents  exceptional  features.  The  rest  is  simply  an 
enlargement  of  a  score  of  a  number  of  minor  towns.  A  few 
foreign  style  shops  in  the  Ginza  make  some  display,  for  the 
rest,  miles  of  one-story  wooden  houses  monotonously  alike.  If  the 
district  is  a  business  one,  the  front  is  a  shop.  Otherwise  latticed 
windows  and  in  front  of  the  large  majority  a  screen  or  half-screen 
of  fencing  to  protect  the  houses  from  the  more  immediate  inspec- 
tion of  the  passing  public.  In  the  wealthier  residence  quarter  high 
fences  and  more  or  less  elaborate  gates,  and  within,  some  trees  the 
tops  of  which  appear  behind  the  fence.  The  house  behind  all  this 
may  be  old.  It  may  have  escaped  the  ravages  of  time  and  fire, 
but  the  probability  is  that  it  has  not  passed  its  quarter  of  a  century 
and  in  all  events  architecturally  would  resemble  its  neighbours. 
This  is  the  usual  panorama  seen  by  foreign  eyes,  for  the  shortest 
route  from  the  Shimbashi  station  to  Uyeno — the  station  of  the 
Northern  Railway — leads  through  narrow  streets  to  the  left  of  the 
Ginza.  Streets  given  over  to  special  trades  where  one  block  will 
be  a  waving  front  of  kimono  stuffs  displayed  to  would-be  pur- 
chasers, and  the  next  block  a  choice  collection  of  old  metal  of  all 
kinds  from  a  second-hand  hib.\chi  to  a  second-hand  anchor  for  a 
junk.  There  is  one  thing  to  be  noticed  about  the  streets  them- 
selves, and  that  is  the  fairly  good  condition  in  which  they  are  kept. 
They  may  be  ankle  deep  in  mud,  but  the  only  obstructions  tolerated 
are  the  repairs  made  by  the  municipality  itself — perhaps  cutting  off 
part  or  the  whole  of  a  street  from  public  travel  or  coating  it  with  a 
layer  of  rough  stone.  This  is  a  feature  of  no  little  importance 
where  many  of  the  people  go  barefoot  or  at  best  with  straw  sandals" 


74  SAKURAMBO 

on  their  feet.  Broken  glass,  fragments  of  tin  cans  or  other  sharp 
objects  would  be  very  serious  under  such  conditions,  but  one  does 
not  often  hear  of  accidents  of  this  character.  The  "  ricksha  "  men 
run  ahead  through  the  darkness  without  much  care  to  footing. 
I  remember  once  in  crossing  the  city  at  night  one  of  my  runners 
stubbed  his  toe  rather  severely  against  a  manhole  which  had  been 
set  so  as  to  project  above  the  road  level,  and  there  was  no  little 
excitement  over  it.  It  is  the  only  time  I  have  seen  them  show 
front  to  a  policeman,  and  he  regarded  the  fact  of  some  importance, 
for  a  note  was  at  once  made  of  the  occurrence  and  presumably 
somebody  was  hauled  over  the  coals  for  carelessness. 

The  approach  to  Uyeno  is  along  one  of  the  best  stretches  of 
highway  in  Tokyo;  a  broad  avenue  nearly  a  mile  in  length  and 
with  a  pavement  for  foot  passengers.  The  Japanese,  however,  has 
as  yet  not  taken  up  the  question  of  tree-planting  in  the  cities,  and 
from  side  to  side  it  is  as  bare  as  a  board,  except  in  so  far  as  electric 
poles  and  rails  for  the  cars  break  its  surface.  The  station  itself  is 
an  anticlimax.  Most  Japanese  stations  are.  Bare,  shabby  wait- 
ing rooms  and  a  travelling  public  with  manners  quite  as  bad  as 
they  are  in  any  other  part  of  the  world.  Otherwise  the  construc- 
tion is  excellent.  The  platforms  are  all  raised  so  that  one  enters 
the  cars  on  the  same  level.  They  are  all  faced  with  stone  and 
macadamized,  and  the  larger  stations  are  sheltered  from  the 
weather  throughout  the  platform.  Overhead  bridges  connect  the 
different  platforms  and  only  travellers  are  allowed  access  to  them 
or  those  holding  platform  tickets.  The  speed  on  Japanese  rail- 
ways is  intolerably  slow,  twenty  to  twenty-five  miles  an  hour  for 
the  average  express  service.  This  is  largely  due  to  the  fact  that 
most  of  the  roads  are  single-tracked,  and  the  trains  take  root  on 
switches  until  one  thinks  the  operation  of  the  road  has  come  to  a 
sudden  and  untimely  end.  The  roads  are  protected  by  an  ample 
signal  service  and  the  engineer  carries  his  right  of  way  with  him, 
so  to  speak,  in  the  shape  of  a  little  baton  which  is  given  up  at  the 
next  block.  The  Japanese  boast  that  they  never  have  an  accident 
— not  strictly  true — and  there  is  no  particular  reason  to  dread  one, 


IWASHIRO    WAY  75 

for  it  does  not  seem  feasible  that  there  should  be  any  great  crash  if 
two  trains  should  happen  to  dispute  the  right  of  way.  The  Sanyo 
railway  in  the  South  has  the  best  service,  and  the  government  road 
—the  Tokaido — has  the  worst.  On  their  Maebashi  line  the  North- 
ern railway  have  some  cars  of  improved  American  pattern,  and 
their  weight  and  strength  are  palpably  evident  in  smoother  run- 
ning. In  some  ways  the  Japanese  newspaper  man  is  much  re- 
stricted in  his  legitimate  field  of  operations,  and  some  of  our  scare 
headlines  would  be  treasure  trove  as  journalistic  timber,  substitute 
for  the  gay  doings  of  the  geisha.  "  A  terrible  crash,"  '  The  flyer 
telescopes  the  dynamite  local  at  sixty  miles  an  hour,"  "  Amos 
Quito  one  of  the  victims,"  etc.,  etc.,  have  not  yet  been  imported. 
The  Oriental  is  supposed  to  be  far  more  careless  as  to  his  life  than 
the  Occidental,  but  I  think  in  some  ways  the  statement  has  its 
limits.  JJe  is  one  of  the  best  drilled  creatures  in  the  world.  Im- 
plicit obedience  to  his  superiors  is  one  of  his  qualities,  and  when 
sent  on  a  mission  involving  death  itself  he  will  carry  that  mission 
out  to  the  best  of  his  ability  and  with  great  indifference  to  the 
result  personally.  But  he  takes  it  for  granted  that  what  can  be 
done  has  been  done  to  obviate  the  dangers  attendant.  No  mis- 
take has  been  made,  and  if  he  comes  to  grief  it  is  so  written  down 
in  the  fates.  East,  as  in  West,  there  is  not  indifference  to  useless 
sacrifice  of  life.  He  makes  one  of  the  best  soldiers  in  the  world 
simply  on  this  ground,  that  his  individuality  has  been  merged  into 
the  ground  mass  of  the  operating  body.  He  is  an  instrument  and 
has  abdicated  his  own  personality,  so  to  speak.  His  body  is  there 
but  his  mind  is  "  possessed  "  by  his  superior  officer  just  as  it  is 
"  possessed  "  by  one  of  his  Shinto  gods. 

Xow  this  is  a  very  good  quality  and  a  very  formidable  one — 
found  elsewhere  it  can  be  added — but  carried  to  an  extreme  in  the 
Asiatic.  It  is  the  spirit  that  has  animated  Asia  from  the  dawn  of 
history,  and  it  is  the  direct  opposite  of  the  great  pioneer  nations 
which  foster  individualism.  With  them  the  individual  has  scat- 
tered himself  over  the  world,  getting  a  foothold,  subduing  the 
savage  tribes,  developing  the  country  and,  most  important,  develop- 


76  SAKURAMBO 

ing  himself  with  it,  until  the  first  thing  the  world  has  known  is  that 
from  a  few  scattered  energetic  men,  with  little  support  but  their 
own  right  arms,  a  great  colony  and  a  great  nation  has  sprung  into 
life.  The  government-ridden  man  has  never  done  this  as  yet.  In 
the  first  place  the  government  decides  whether  there  shall  be  any 
going  at  all.  This  is  the  first  blow  to  his  self-reliance.  In  the 
second  place,  it  says  where  he  shall  go,  and  lays  down  endless 
minute  rules  as  to  what  he  shall  do  when  he  gets  there  and  how 
he  shall  do'it.  On  new  soil  broad  lines  are  the  only  guide,  and  the 
minutiae  are  so  much  rubbish  from  the  official  brain  which  clog 
the  wheels  of  progress.  They  rarely  fit  the  new  conditions,  and 
simply  deal  a  second  blow7  in  stripping  the  settler  of  so  much  more 
of  his  remaining  stock  of  self-reliance.  What  is  left  is  not  worth 
having;  a  gang  of  labourers  who  have  simply  changed  their  habi- 
tat not  their  condition,  themselves  looking  to  their  government 
to  smooth  over  every  difficulty  for  them,  and  their  government 
regarding  them  as  another  source  from  and  by  which  to  satisfy 
placeholders.  The  nations  of  the  world  all  started  fairly  even. 
Asia  had  as  good  a  chance  as  Europe  to  people  the  world,  but  the 
Asiatic  system  was  against  it  and  they,  hug  their  chains  to  this 
day.  Continental  Europe  to  some  extent  makes  the  same  mistake, 
but  on  a  much  less  complete  scale.  Only  the  Anglo-Saxon  has 
set  the  individual  free,  giving  play  to  his  freest  efforts  and  to-clav 
ruling  half  the  world.  Continental  colonies  are  languishing  the 
world  over.  America,  North  and  South,  is  the  goal  of  the  Con- 
tinental European  who  is  worth  having,  the  man  who  has  energy 
enough  to  try  and  better  his  condition  in  preference  to  tamely  going 
to  the  wall  at  home.  And  America  is  getting  them  simply  because 
these  men  see  their  failure  at  home  and  do  not  see  why  they  should 
succeed  under  the  same  conditions  abroad,  whereas  they  see  their 
fellows  succeed  on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic.  The  Japanese  is 
far  too  much  of  an  Asiatic  to  feel  the  charm  of  individual  freedom. 
He  is  content  with  all  the  government  he  can  get,  to  have  his  down- 
sittings  and  his  uprisings  regulated  for  him,  much  as  one  bobs  a 
sparrow  on  the  tail  to  make  him  drink;  but  it  is  getting  hard  to 


IWASHIRO    WAY  77 

find  a  living  at  home  and  hence  he  emigrates  in  bands.  They 
may  come  in  as  individuals,  but  invariably  drift  into  their  local 
communities.  As  the  object  is  simply  to  make  a  living,  and  not  to 
form  part  and  parcel  with  their  hosts,  they  take  no  interest  in  their 
temporary  home  except  as  its  laws  may  press  on  their  prejudices 
or  the  local  interest  of  the  Japanese  community.  As  individuals 
they  deal  with  their  own  community  and  their  community,  as  a 
settlement  outside  the  local  authority,  deals  with  that  authority. 
Colonization  by  government  order  perhaps  can  be  successfully  car- 
ried out  close  at  hand,  and  there  seems  to  be  a  future  for  the  Jap- 
anese is  northeastern  Asia.  Whether  under  that  system  they  are 
going  to  become  competitors  as  a  world  power  remains  to  be  seen 
and  much  to  be  doubted.  Colonies  must  be  planted  with  the  even- 
tuality of  becoming  self-supporting  and  self-seeking,  but  as  the 
Mussulman,  the  world  over,  turns  his  face  to  Mecca  as  the  sun 
rises  and  sets,  so  the  Japanese  for  ages  has  turned,  and  for  ages 
perhaps  will  turn,  his  face  to  the  throne  of  the  Mikado.  Western 
individualism  always  has  defeated  the  centralism  of  Asia.  Be- 
tween the  man  who  carves  the  most  exquisite  netsuke  or  weaves 
the  finest  silk,  and  the  man  who  first  detected  radium  emanations, 
there  is  a  great  gulf  fixed,  and  granted  the  same  conditions  the 
same  result  will  follow.  Asia  must  not  only  adopt  the  spirit  of 
western  material  progress,  but  must  prepare  to  adopt  the  means 
to  keep  that  spirit  alive. 

If  one  looks  at  a  geological  map  of  the  main  island  of  the 
Empire,  there  can  be  seen  a  white  splotch  shaped  something  like 
a  polypus  with  the  body  at  the  head  of  Tokyo  Bay  and  extending 
arms  in  different  directions.  This  is  the  Tokyo  plain  pushing 
as  far  south  as  Odawara  and  the  Hakone  Mountains,  running  other 
branches  up  to  and  into  the  main  mountain  mass  to  the  west,  and 
north-  to  Sendai,  with  an  offshoot  to  the  upper  part  of  Kazusa. 
It  has  not  been  many  ages  since  it  was  all  under  water  and  in  the 
main  is  level.  A  range  of  low  hills  stretches  across  country  at 
the  head  of  the  bay  from  the  Tonegawa  River  to  the  Tsurumigawa 
at  Kawasaki,  and  the  more  elevated  part  of  Tokyo  has  been  built 


78  SAKURAMBO 

on  these  hills.  Half  an  hour  however  to  the  north  takes  me  out  of 
the  little  valleys  and  on  to  the  main  plain,  which  extends  a  sea  of 
rice-fields  in  every  direction.  This  is  pleasantly  broken  by  groves 
of  trees,  sometimes  mere  clumps  of  half  a  dozen  or  less  around  a 
shrine,  and  by  the  villages  dotted  over  the  plain.  The  whole  land 
is  under  the  most  complete  cultivation,  and  as  we  roll  over  miles  of 
this  plain  it  is  not  hard  to  see  why  the  lord  of  Yedo  obtained  and 
held  such  a  dominating  position  in  the  political  development  of 
Japan.  Nearing  Utsunomiya  the  Nikko  Mountains  appear  to  the 
left  and  ahead  on  the  right  the  outlyers  of  the  Coast  Range,  which 
takes  a  much  greater  development  farther  north.  The  stations 
mostly  have  names  familiar  enough  in  English  dress,  Akabane, 
11  Red  Wing,"  Oyama,  "  Little  Mountain,"  Kurihashi,  "  Chestnut 
Bridge,"  Shirakawa,  "  Level  River."  At  the  more  important 
stations  men  parade  the  platforms  with  trays  of  little  boxes,  sold  in 
pairs,  one  containing  rice,  the  other  a  slice  of  omelet,  some  smoked 
fish  or  stewed  meat,  bamboo  root  and  relish.  Beer,  at  some  places 
"  sandoyeach  "  (which  is  close  enough  to  sandwich),  all  sorts  of 
kwashi  or  cakes,  and  soft  drinks.  This  business  is  in  the  hands  of 
the  neighbouring  teahouses,  and  no  matter  how  one  may  differ 
as  to  the  edibility  of  the  contents  of  the  boxes  the  surroundings  are 
usually  neat  and  clean.  The  stations  differ — to  Japanese  eyes 
anyhow — in  their  makeup  of  these  boxes,  and  by  following  the 
example  of  our  native  neighbour  we  can  do  better.  As  the  place 
that  enjoys  the  culinary  reputation  is  reached,  heads  go  out  in 
every  direction  and  the  bento  man  is  enshrined  on  the  pedestal; 
whereas  elsewhere  tobacco,  newspapers,  etc.,  have  the  call.  Most 
of  the  foreign  passengers  leave  the  train  at  Utsunomiya,  which  is 
the  junction  for  Nikko.  This  was  but  half  of  my  present  day's 
journey.  The  boy  brought  on  a  fresh  tea  supply — a  little  stand 
fitted  with  pot  and  saucers  supplied  by  the  railway  company— 
the  blue  mountains  unrolled  in  a  continuous  line  in  the  West,  a 
volcanic  cone  here  and  there  jutting  out  of  the  mountain  wall,  and 
the  same  scene  of  rice-plains  and  valleys  unfolded  itself,  but  here 
interspersed  with  barren  spots,  sandy,  and  on  which  only  stunted 


IWASHIRO    WAY  79 

pines  were  growing.  At  Koriyama,  "  Herd  Mountain,"  it  was  my 
turn  to  leave  the  train  and  take  the  branch  line  which  runs  into  the 
mountains  and  is  extended  as  far  as  Wakamatsu  in  Iwashiro.  It 
was  evening  when  we  entered  the  fine  gorge  of  the  Gohyakugawa, 
the  mountains  rising  high  on  both  sides.  My  destination  was  Ina- 
washiro,  a  little  mountain  village  at  the  foot  of  Bandaisan,  which 
volcano  soon  appeared  on  the  right  raising  his  head  to  a  height 
that  in  the  gloaming  looked  unpleasantly  excessive.  It  was  quite 
dark  when  I  reached  the  little  platform  station,  to  find  that  as 
usually  happens  in  Japan  the  connection  between  station  and 
town  was  rather  theoretical,  or  perhaps  the  railway  had  been  built 
with  a  liberal  eye  to  the  future  growth  of  the  place.  This  was 
nearly  a  mile  off,  and  over  a  road  recently  coated  with  shingle  which 
I  considered  very  bad  walking,  although  later  I  revised  my  views 
and  could  conceive  of  something  worse.  In  the  darkness  it  was 
most  picturesque.  The  great  mountain  loomed  up  directly  in  front 
towering  over  the  little  village,  the  outskirts  were  farms  hidden 
behind  hedges  of  bamboo  in  the  darkness  and  taking  a  familiar 
home  look.  The  towrn  itself  thus  gradually  entered  on  was  a  mere 
mountain  village  with  no  pretence  to  anything  but  its  agricultural 
affairs.  The  night  was  a  hot  night  in  early  August  and  people 
were  lounging  up  and  down,  the  houses  wide  open  from  front  to 
back,  and  everybody  was,  so  to  speak,  metaphorically  if  not  literally 
out  of  doors.  The  inn  was  no  exception  to  the  rule,  and  was  built 
more  on  the  lines  of  one  of  the  farm  houses  than  \vith  the  formality 
of  the  town  inns.  The  gossips  were  mainly  collected  in  the  front 
apartment  which  also  answered  for  kitchen,  and  Ojisan  made  but 
little  show  of  his  books  and  writing  pad  and  nesans  and  the  other 
paraphernalia  displayed  in  what  corresponds  in  the  Japanese  ya- 
doya  to  the  "  office  "  of  our  western  hotels.  I  was  quite  habitu- 
ated to  the  conditions  of  the  Japanese  bath,  but  I  must  say  it  was 
the  first  experience  of  entering  it  so  "  coram  publico  "  as  in  this 
particular  case.  The  general  lavatory  appliances  for  washing 
everything  from  one's  person  to  the  dishes  were  jumbled  together 
in  the  front  of  the  establishment.  In  mountain  districts  I  had 


80  SAKURAMBO 

often  seen  people — men,  women,  and  children — tubbing  in  front 
of  the  houses  for  the  very  good  reason  that  the  house  was  too  small 
to  conveniently  arrange  a  place  for  the  bath  other  than  the  high- 
way. I  had  now  an  opportunity  to  put  this  experience  to  use. 
The  tub,  a  converted  beer  barrel,  was  placed  in  the  front  of  the 
yadoya  and  open  to  the  public,  although  withdrawn  some  dozen 
feet  back  from  the  house  front.  In  this  real  Japan  we  have  some- 
thing of  the  times  of  the  garden  of  Eden,  minus  fig-leaves  or 
before  that  unseemly  episode.  Undressing  to  that  condition 
known  to  the  Scotch  as  a  "  mother  naked  man,"  handing  the 
garments  over  to  nesan  (elder  sister),  in  turn  we  stepped  in  to  be 
boiled  like  a  lobster  for  as  long  as  desired.  Nesan  washed  her 
lacquerware,  Obasan  (honourable  grandam)  cooked  the  supper, 
I  bathed,  we  were  all  girls  together,  and  the  passing  public  lacked 
the  curiosity  to  gaze. 

Now  this  brings  up  the  question  of  modesty  as  it  is  under- 
stood East  and  West.  Or  rather  as  it  is  misunderstood,  for  there 
is  much  reason  to  believe  that  we  are  tilting  at  the  two  sides  of  the 
same  shield.  And  to  both  sides  its  contrast  presents  features  that 
shocks  every  sense  of  what  they  understand  to  be  modesty.  The 
South  Sea  islander,  who  would  send  his  spouse  to  the  tent  of  his 
brand-new  white  friend,  would  have  been  highly  scandalized  at  any 
appearance  of  women  in  general  association  with  men  and  in  public 
life.  The  women  have  their  own  side  at  public  festivities,  as  much 
so  as  in  any  Quaker  meeting  house  of  the  old  days,  and  generally 
from  the  external  relations  with  the  other  sex  women  could  be 
said  to  be  most  carefully  looked  after  as  respects  the  exposure  of 
their  persons.  If  external  respect  has  any  relation  to  modesty 
then  the  Mohammedan  should  be  held  to  be  the  most  considerate 
to  his  womenkind,  for  he  veils  them  from  head  to  foot  in  such  way 
as  to  prevent  even  an  outline  of  the  form  appearing.  But  the 
very  reverse  is  the  case,  for  they  perhaps  hold  women  lower  than 
among  any  other  nation,  not  even  granting  them  a  soul.  The 
question  therefore  of  exposure  of  the  person  as  related  to  modesty 
is  a  purely  relative  one,  and,  to  tell  the  truth,  is  simply  related 


IWASHIRO    WAY  81 

to  mental  condition  and  is  governed  largely  by  climate.  The 
standard  of  correctness  is  a  purely  national  one,  and  where  evil  is 
not  thought  there  is  no  evil,  until  the  serpent  enters  the  garden 
of  paradise  and  whispers  the  thought  about.  One  cannot  even 
grant  that  external  modesty  is  properly  a  question  of  morals. 
There  is  a  larger  percentage  of  illegitimate  births  among  the 
nations  of  northern  Europe  than  among  the  nations  of  the  South, 
the  prevalent  form  of  religion  undoubtedly  being  the  controlling 
factor.  It  is  only  necessary  to  contrast  the  twro  neighbouring  coun- 
tries of  Scotland  and  Ireland  to  have  an  instance.  Exposure  of 
the  person  plainly  has  nothing  to  do  with  these  cases.  In  fact 
exposure  of  the  person  is  more  of  an  antidote  to  pruriency  than  an 
incitement.  Artists  who  deal  with  the  nude  are  by  no  means 
immoral  people,  and  in  fact,  if  we  can  judge  by  divorce  court 
records  they  figure  very  favourably.  In  fact,  sexual  immorality 
is  a  question  not  of  clothes  at  all  but  of  social  standard.  Questions 
of  property  and  succession  visit  the  offence  on  the  woman  in  such 
cases  in  a  social  sense,  and  social  damnation,  the  auricular  confes- 
sion, and  fear  of  Hell  in  people  of  lively  religious  faith,  have  more 
preventive  effect  than  any  innate  feeling  as  to  exposure  of  the 
person.  In  western  communities  our  ideas  of  modesty  are  some- 
what contradictory.  Every  effort  is  made  to  develop  and  beautify 
the  lines  of  the  female  figure  and  the  whole  dressmaker's  art  is 
directed  to  such  display.  A  woman  is  perfectly  modest  who  i? 
almost  naked  to  the  waist  and  yet  must  not  show  an  inch  of  ankle. 
Now  this  is  an  acquired  feeling,  for  any  young  girl  who  appears  in 
Tier  first  low  neck  dress  feels — and  ought  to  feel  under  our  train- 
ing— a  shock  to  her  modesty.  It  quickly  becomes  customary  and 
such  exposure  is  regarded  as  perfectly  natural.  In  the  West  also 
we  associate  acts  of  necessity  with  our  animal  nature  and  carefully 
seclude  such  features  in  public  life.  This  is  highly  proper  on  the 
ground  of  the  offence  such  necessities  give  to  our  whole  aesthetic 
sense.  The  range  of  such  seclusion  however  is  very  wide,  and 
certainly  is  not  to  be  carried  to  the  ridiculous  excess  as  in  certain 
American  cities,  where  public  latrines  are  not  supplied  at  all  or  in 


82  SAKURAMBO 

such  minor  numbers  as  to  be  of  little  practical  use ;  namely,  only  in 
certain  public  buildings  in  which  business  may  keep  men  for  some 
large  portion  of  the  day. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  in  the  West,  according  to  our  varying 
standard,  we  act  wisely.  We  have  forcibly  connected  clothes  and 
modesty,  but  it  is  a  case  of  the  whited  sepulchre  and  on  the  point 
of  pruriency  the  West  cannot  claim  any  cleaner  record  than  the 
East.  Pruriency  is  common  enough  in  the  East,  and  the  eastern 
mind  is  no  cleaner  than  the  western  mind.  In  one  respect,  in  his 
lower  view  of  woman  he  is  distinctly  worse,  as  shown  by  the 
snatches  of  remarks  cast  by  coolies  when  women  pass,  and  which 
rouse  the  protests  of  their  own  newspapers.  He  has  the  advantage 
that  a  number  of  minor  necessities,  which  we  absurdly  call  animal 
forgetting  that  we  ourselves  are  animals,  do  not  arouse  in  him 
other  opportunities  for  its  exercise.  The  Japanese  woman  is  just 
as  modest  as  her  western  sister,  if  directed  in  somewhat  different 
channels.  To  her  the  exposure  of  the  low  neck  dress  is  of  the 
grossest  immodesty  and  she  would  never  dream  of  exposing  her 
breast  in  that  manner  just  as  she  would  not  hesitate  to  suckle  her 
child  in  public;  in  which  connection  it  can  be  added  that  among 
the  upper  classes  of  Japanese,  wet  nurses  are  commonly  employed. 
She  would  not  hesitate  to  retire  for  purposes  of  necessity.  Here 
we  in  the  West  have  carried  modesty  to  an  absurd  excess,  for  all 
sorts  of  excuses  are  resorted  to  by  men  to  obtain  a  few  minutes 
intermission  at  the  theatre,  and  many  a  woman  has  suffered  physi- 
cal injury  because  the  train  crew  have  made  up  the  train  so  that 
the  woman's  lavatory  is  placed  at  the  upper  end  of  the  car.  Cus- 
tom has  been  much  modified  in  Japan  simply  because  the  idea  of 
evil  has  entered — which  by  the  way  shows  how  much  custom  has  to 
do  with  the  question.  To  the  Japanese  woman  the  bath  is  a  neces- 
sity and  she  does  not  hesitate  to  visit  the  public  bath;  or  rather 
did  not  hesitate,  for  this  practice  is  now  only  found  in  the  country 
districts  retired  from  the  view  of  foreigners.  Once  more  the 
"  idea  "  has  entered  and  hence  the  Japanese  have  taken  measures 
to  guard  against  its  evil  influence. 


IWASHIRO    WAY  83 

Bandaisan  had  not  grown  appreciably  smaller  with  daylight. 
Standing  at  Inawashiro  at  an  elevation  of  2000  feet,  the  top  of  the 
mountain  was  some  4000  feet  above  us,  and  the  uncertain  factor 
was  just  how  much  of  that  ascent  was  necessary  to  secure  my 
object,  a  matter  of  no  little  consideration  on  a  hot  August  day. 
Part  of  the  way  anyhow  was  to  be  done  on  horseback,  and  two 
steeds,  by  no  means  fiery,  were  waiting  me  at  the"  inn  front.  Jap- 
anese cattle  seem  to  come  under  the  national  influence,  so  to  speak, 
and  have  the  same  respect  for  the  police  regulations  as  the  native 
himself.  The  stallion  and  the  bull  are  seen  performing  their  func- 
tions as  draft  animals  in  every  direction.  The  Japanese  horse  is 
an  overworked  quiet  little  beast.  They  have  a  nasty  trick  of  biting, 
which  requires  as  much  caution  in  passing  them  by  the  head  as  the 
average  mule  by  the  heels.  I  and  my  "  boy,"  climbing  up  on  our 
Japanese  saddles,  were  started  off  led  by  two  natives  in  raincoats 
and  mushroom  hats  of  vast  size.  Altogether  the  sight  was  edify- 
ing and  called  to  my  mind  in  some  ways  Hogarth's  painting  of  the 
Knight  and  Ralph  in  Hudibras.  We  were  taking  a  base  advan- 
tage of  Bandaisan  by  attacking  him  in  the  rear,  and  passed  out  of 
the  village  along  the  base  of  the  mountain  paralleling  the  railway 
running  nearly  a  mile  away.  Gradually  rising  up  the  slope  a  beau- 
tiful view  unfolded  itself.  Japan  is  made  up  of  mountain  and 
valley  scenery  of  every  kind,  but  I  can  recall  but  one  other  instance 
that  gives  the  exact  sense  of  isolation  that  is  found  in  this  Waka- 
niatsu  plain  ;  the  sense  of  unity  in  itself.  The  steep  narrow  valleys 
so  often  seen  seem  part  of  a  system,  the  ranges  piling  up  and 
obviously  forming  links  in  a  more  or  less  extensive  chain.  So 
many  twists  and  turns  and  we  are  again  in  the  world  of  men. 
But  here  we  are  in  the  bottom  of  a  bowl.  The  plain  is  wide 
enough  to  give  a  sense  of  completeness  to  the  scene.  The  villages 
sprinkled  over  its  surface  make  a  little  world  in  themselves,  but  this 
plain  is  surrounded  by  a  wall  of  mountains  except  at  the  corner 
where  the  Gohyakugawa,  flowing  from  lake  Inawashiro,  breaks 
through  the  gorges.  Even  here  the  mountains  so  fold  and  overlap 
each  other  as  to  hide  entrance  and  exit.  The  plain  seems  abso- 


84  SAKURAMBO 

lutely  cut  off  from  the  outside,  the  only  apparent  exit  being  over 
the  lofty  and  precipitous  wall  of  mountains.  Lake  Inawashiro 
itself  is  a  product  of  Bandaisan,  filling  a  depression  the  result  of 
an  eruption  of  the  volcano.  It  teems  with  fish,  but  the  sides  being 
meadow  flats  and  not  wooded,  it  presents  but  few  attractive  fea- 
tures. Not  far  from  its  head  lies  the  large  city  of  Wakamatsu, 
not  in  contact  with  the  lake  as  would  be  thought  desirable,  and  not 
particularly  in  touch  with  its  railway  which  has  an  air  of  uncer- 
tainty as  to  its  future  direction.  We  obtained  no  little  height  on 
these  slopes,  and  gradually  turning  the  base  of  the  mountain, 
ascended  over  grass-covered  slopes  and  up  to  the  entrance  of  a 
valley,  which  in  direction  was  taking  us  toward  Inawashiro  again, 
but  which  gradually  narrowed  to  the  base  of  a  saddle  connecting 
Bandaisan  with  its  nearest  neighbour.  The  trail  straggled  over 
these  slopes  which  rose  at  a  very  easy  grade.  Once  well  in  the 
valley,  clumps  of  bushes  and  trees  appeared,  and  the  path  became 
decidedly  bad  and  the  slope  steeper  until  it  began  to  climb  up  to  the 
foot  of  the  saddle  where  were  located  a  group  of  two  or  three  huts. 
These  were  found  to  be  a  hot  spring,  very  primitive  and  plainly 
only  of  use  to  the  country  people  roundabout.  Here  horses  were 
left  behind,  and  here  also  followed  one  of  the  agreeable  surprises 
in  life,  for  a  ten  minutes'  climb  up  the  zigzags  brought  me  to  the 
top  of  the  saddle  and  the  huts  which  were  partly  damaged  in  the 
eruption  of  '88,  the  elevation  being  5000  feet.  Off  to  the  right 
lies  the  summit  of  the  mountain ;  to  the  left  my  road  led  down  over 
the  debris  of  the  eruption  to  the  village  of  Kawakami.  There 
are  some  sulphur  banks  and  hot  pools  here  on  the  saddle  mainly  of 
interest  in  showing  that  the  volcano  still  has  plenty  of  life  in  it. 
Below  lies  the  crater,  and  we  started  down  over  as  rough  a  piece 
of  ground  as  we  could  desire.  In  places  the  trail  was  pretty 
fair,  but  even  then  the  sharp  cinder  played  havoc  with  any  kind  of 
footgear.  The  debris  was  mainly  made  up  of  a  tufa,  almost  an 
acid  slag,  and  in  the  shape  of  fragments  ranging  from  heaps  of 
large  bowlders  piled  up  in  confused  hillocks  to  the  finest  sand.  A 
favorite  form  for  the  trail  to  take  was  over  these  fragments  some- 


IWASHIRO    WAY  85 

what  larger  than  road-metal,  and  a  mile  of  this  cut  beyond  repair 
a  stout  pair  of  oxhide  boots.  There  seemed  to  be  very  little  mud 
to  cement  this  mass.  The  crater  is  very  impressive.  Properly 
speaking,  it  is  a  cleft.  The  walls  tower  up  a  thousand  feet  and 
more.  At  the  head  of  the  cleft — the  actual  crater — a  few  hot  pools 
and  fumaroles  form  the  source  of  the  poisonous  little  stream  which 
flows  down  the  side  of  the  mountain.  \Ye  lunched  here  to  find 
out  the  grievous  oversight  of  the  leader  of  the  expedition,  and 
omission  of  "  the  boy  "  — no  water  in  the  commissariat.  Of  course 
there  was  nothing  to  be  found  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood, 
and  we  would  not  have  dared  to  drink  it  if  there  had  been,  for  it 
almost  certainly  would  have  contained  enough  arsenic  to  give  us 
at  least  grave  discomfort  of  mind  if  not  of  body.  The  native 
himself  rarely  drinks  water  unless  he  has  some  information  as  to 
its  source,  and  the  prospects  of  "  the  boy  "  and  myself  were  poor  in- 
deed unless  there  happened  to  be  a  tea  shed  at  the  foot  of  the 
mountain,  a  thing  hardly  likely  on  such  an  out  of  the  way  excur- 
sion. On  we  went,  scrambling  down  banks  of  rubble,  then  a  piece 
of  fair  going  over  a  little  level.  The  great  cleft  stretched  on  the 
right  extending  all  the  way  to  the  foot  of  the  mountain.  Looking 
back  and  to  the  left  over  the  devastated  country  toward  Lake 
Hibari,  formed  after  the  eruption  by  alteration  of  levels  and  dam- 
ming of  the  water  courses,  it  was  as  great  a  contrast  to  the  Waka- 
matsu  plain  with  its  rice-fields  as  can  be  imagined.  The  mountain 
itself  is  to  be  classed  with  the  explosive  type,  and  the  eruption  of 
1888  is  almost  the  counterpart  of  that  of  Tarawera  of  New  Zealand 
in  1886,  which  however  was  on  a  greater  scale.  In  both  cases  the 
side  of  the  mountain  has  been  blown  out,  and  an  enormous  mass 
of  debris  scattered  over  the  exposed  country.  In  the  case  of  Tara- 
wera this  was  in  the  form  of  fine  mud,  the  material  being  literally 
blown  to  dust  and  carried  down  by  the  torrents  of  rain  following 
the  eruption.  There,  too,  at  Tarawera,  the  effects  on  one  side  of 
the  mountain  have  been  tremendous,  the  outpouring  of  the  liquid 
mud  being  enormous,  covering  the  country  for  miles  to  a  far 
greater  extent  than  at  Bandaisan.  The  country  around  Tara- 


86  SAKURAMBO 

wera  however  is  somewhat  desolate — fern-covered  brackens — and 
great  as  is  the  contrast  in  crossing  the  divide  between  Lake 
Rotorua  and  Lake  Rotomahana,  it  is  not  so  great  as  between  the 
two  sides  of  Bandaisan.  Our  last  scramble  was  a  helter-skelter 
over  bowlders  and  through  and  down  the  little  stream  flowing  from 
the  crater,  and  after  five  hours  of  this  work  we  stalked  through  the 
little  village  of  Kawakami  which  lies  almost  athwart  the  cleft.  It 
came  near  being  overwhelmed  during  the  eruption,  but  escaped, 
lying  just  on  the  edge  of  the  downpour.  The  loss  of  life  was  not 
so  great  at  Bandaisan.  Some  four  or  five  hundred  perished,  but 
the  destruction  of  property  was  very  great,  a  dozen  villages  being 
buried  in  mud  and  cinder.  The  inhabitants  had  warning  and 
most  of  them  had  already  left  their  homes  for  places  of  safety. 
There  was  no  sign  of  tea  shed  or  place  to  substitute  for  it.  One 
female,  in  purls  m.turalibus  and  the  bath,  was  the  only  living 
creature  in  sight.  The  rest  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  little  hamlet 
seemed  to  have  disappeared  underground.  As  negotiations  with 
the  lady  were  not  en  regie  under  the  conditions  we  continued  on 
down  the  valley  to  complete  our  circuit  of  the  mountain  and  enter 
Inawashiro  at  the  end  opposite  to  that  by  which  we  had  left  it.  It 
was  a  pretty  walk  down  the  river  gorge.  A  fairly  good  cart  track, 
with  the  Nagasegawa,  the  opposite  hills,  and  the  slopes  of  Ban- 
daisan to  keep  us  company.  About  a  mile  from  Inawashiro  we 
crossed  a  mud  flow  curiously  distinguished  by  its  sharp  differentia- 
tion from  the  surrounding  land.  It  narrowly  missed  Inawashiro. 
A  pretty  walk  through  orchards  and  along  the  paddy  fields  brought 
us  again  to  our  inn.  The  seven  miles  from  Kawakami  had  not 
improved  affairs,  and,  as  with  the  good  citizens  of  Orleans,  Panta- 
gruel  had  seized  us  by  the  throats  and  our  tongues  lay  out  a  yard 
long.  This  was  soon  remedied  at  the  inn,  and  after  boiling  the 
stiffness  out  of  my  limbs  before  a  larger  and  more  interested  audi- 
ence than  the  previous  evening  I  stretched  out  on  the  soft  cool 
tatami  with  a  better  appreciation  of  that  necessary  article  of  Jap- 
anese furniture  than  before  the  scramble  over  the  rubble  heaps 
of  Bandaisan. 


IWASHIRO    WAY  87 

The  next  morning  I  again  made  my  way  over  the  stony  road 
to  the  station,  which,  after  the  experience  of  the  day  before,  seemed 
a  masterpiece  of  Mr.  Macadam.  A  short  run  of  half  an  hour 
along  the  lake  landed  me  at  Wakamatsu,  a  large  Japanese  town  of 
the  usual  stamp,  with  a  park  occupying  the  site  of  the  former  castle. 
The  revolution  of  1868  saw  hard  fighting  here,  and  Prince  Aidzu 
was  the  last  to  show  organized  resistance  on  the  Main  Island  to  the 
triumphant  southern  clans.  With  the  fall  of  Wakamatsu  the 
Tokugawa  sun  had  set  forever.  The  town  is  prettily  situated, 
out  on  the  plain  but  close  to  foothills  on  the  east.  On  a  spur  over- 
looking it  is  a  temple  from  which  one  gets  a  beautiful  view  of  the 
plain  with  its  encircling  mountains.  \Ve  are  not  looking  at  it  here 
so  much  from  the  end  of  the  oval  as  when  on  Bandaisan,  and  the 
multum  in  parvo  effect  is  not  so  evident.  The  temple  has  a  very 
particular  interest  as  the  place  where  seventy-eight  of  Aidzu's 
clan  committed  hara-kiri  after  the  fall  of  the  castle.  A  large  stone 
has  been  erected  commemorating  the  event  and  bearing  the  names 
of  the  men,  heroes  in  the  eyes  of  the  Japanese  and  commanding 
respect  in  the  eyes  of  Europeans.  The  question  of  suicide  has  not 
been  judged  in  the  same  way  East  and  West.  Taking  that  chord 
of  European  feeling  which  is  more  or  less  one  of  connected  senti- 
ment, we  find  that  for  2500  years,  while  motives  and  justification 
have  remained  much  the  same,  the  necessity  of  such  justification 
has  always  been  felt  and  each  particular  case  has  had  to  plead  on 
its  own  merits  before  the  bar  of  public  opinion.  Warfare  up  to 
recent  times  has  been  very  cruel,  and  suicide  in  preference  to  hard 
or  degrading  slavery  or  death  by  torture  has  been  a  frequent  reason 
for  such  a  course.  Wretchedness,  misery,  loss  of  honour,  have  all 
furnished  their  victims,  but  it  has  always  been  understood  they 
must  fight  to  the  last  gasp.  Death  on  the  battlefield  has  always 
been  held  in  high  honour,  but  when  that  has  failed  it  has  been  held 
justifiable  to  leave  it  to  the  future  to  retrieve  lost  ground.  Suicide 
being  distinctly  an  escape  from  greater  evil  than  living,  it  has  been 
justly  held  the  man  who  fights  his  life  out  to  the  bitter  end,  using 
every  ounce  of  energy  and  will  to  effect  his  object,  is  the  greater 


88  SAKURAMBO 

man  than  he  who  voluntarily  succumbs.  In  ancient  and  mediaeval 
days  many  a  man  would  have  spared  himself  years  of  suffering 
by  the  course  of  suicide,  but  he  would  have  gained  nothing  in  public 
opinion  by  doing  so.  Suicide,  therefore,  being  a  matter  of  emer- 
gency in  western  life,  has  never  reached  the  stage  of  an  elaborate 
code  of  etiquette.  Certainty  and  rapidity  were  the  two  objects 
sought  and  the  means  adopted.  There  \vas  but  one  form  of 
suicide  which  was  more  formal  in  the  ancient  world,  and  that  was 
the  form  of  execution  performed  under  official  order  and  carried 
out  by  drinking  juice  of  hemlock  or  by  opening  the  veins.  This  is 
the  form  of  suicide  most  nearly  approaching  to  Japanese  hara-kiri 
when  performed  as  a  punishment  for  some  offence  against  the 
state.  And  with  rare  courage  did  these  old  ancients  perform  it, 
for  they  had  neither  the  hope  of  the  Japanese  warrior  in  the  due 
respect  that  his  descendants  would  give  him  on  his  fulfilment  of 
the  Samurai  code,  neither  had  they  the  indifference  as  to  the  future 
that  the  scientific  spirit  of  modern  scepticism  furnishes.  They  had 
a  very  palpable  and  unpleasant  Hell  in  the  next  world  in  which 
even  the  good  got  very  little  comfort.  When  with  calm  courage 
Atticus  Vestinus  opened  his  veins  and  smilingly  bade  farewell  to 
the  very  beautiful  world  he  had  around  him,  he  was  having  a 
much  harder  trial  than  if  he  fell  in  the  heat  of  action  or  after  a 
struggle  with  his  master.  The  old  faith  in  the  gods  to  strike  the 
balance  of  justice  had  left  him,  the  old  superstition  of  the  cold  and 
dark  Hades  still  remained  to  him.  Men  can  die  by  a  code,  or  can 
die  when  they  have  exhausted  every  effort  to  prevail,  but  to  die 
without  this  preliminary  of  struggle  or  according  to  the  capricious 
cold-blooded  will  of  another,  as  he  would  crush  a  spider,  is  the 
hardest  task  of  all.  There  were  cases  of  course  where  the  modern 
spirit  of  scepticism  existed,  but  the  Rome  of  the  Emperors  was 
Agnostic  rather  than  Atheist.  It  had  lost  faith  in  its  old  gods  and 
retained  all  its  fear  of  them.  But  few  had  the  investigating  spirit 
of  old  Empedocles,  who  cast  himself  into  the  yawning  crater  of 
^Etna  to  solve  the  question  of  that  other  world.  The  agnostic 
spirit  in  ancient  philosophy  while  it  did  not  countenance  suicide  did 


IWASHIRO    WAY  89 

not  condemn  it,  except  on  the  grounds  of  to-day:    That  a  man 
should  make  every  use  of  the  life  nature  has  given  him. 

\Yith  the  Christian  Era  of  course  the  whole  viewpoint 
changed.  Suicide  now  became  a  matter  of  religious  prohibition, 
an  offence  against  God.  And  for  1900  years  this  view  of  it  has 
held  western  society  in  an  iron  grasp.  It  is  but  little  more  than 
a  century  that  Christian  countries  heaped  every  sign  of  obloquy 
on  the  suicide.  He  was  buried  at  a  crossroads  with  every  degrad- 
ing accompaniment  heaped  on  the  convicted  criminal.  Like  all 
such  feelings  this  reasoning  has  not  always  been  consistent.  Most 
of  the  early  martyrdoms  were  to  all  purposes  suicides;  suicides 
without  any  more  redeeming  features  than  the  Mohammedan  who 
rushed  to  battle  to  ensure  his  reception  into  Paradise.  So  this 
day  western  religions  refuse  burial  in  consecrated  ground  to  a 
suicide,  and  our  laws  keep  up  the  same  spirit  by  punishing  the  un- 
successful attempt.  The  same  spirit  is  shown  in  the  acrobatics  of 
coroners'  juries  who  dodge  everything  they  decently  can  to  bring 
in  some  other  form  of  verdict  than  suicide.  With  all  this  strong 
tide  of  public  opinion  and  religious  conviction — certainty  of  pun- 
ishment or  contempt  in  this  world  and  certainty  of  Hell  in  the 
next — suicide  could  not  be  eliminated  from  the  western  world 
any  more  than  from  the  eastern  world.  But  the  code  of  honour  had 
to  undergo  modification.  The  code  of  honour  that  was  to  spring 
from  the  feudal  institutions  in  Europe  of  the  seventh  century  was 
quite  as  severe  as  any  that  sprang  from  those  of  Japan  three  hun- 
dred years  later.  Following  the  lines  of  ancient  thought  the  indi- 
vidual man  was  responsible  for  the  complete  use  of  his  life.  It 
was  not  his  to  take  but  to  use,  the  Gods  or  the  Fates  settled  the 
question  of  its  duration,  to  encroach  on  their  sphere  was  sacrilege. 
Hence  it  was  better  to  endure  any  sufferings  in  preference  to 
fclo  de  se,  to  cut  himself  off  from  God's  congregation.  Men, 
women  and  children  perished  in  burning  ruins  or  languished  out 
years  in  noisome  dungeons  not  for  love  of  life  but  for  the  duty 
which  their  religion  put  on  them  to  avoid  every  wilful  semblance  of 
taking  it  themselves.  Indeed  in  this  direction  we  have  a  notable 


90  SAKURAMBO 

Japanese  example  when  Konishi,  the  great  Christian  general  of 
Hideyoshi,  after  the  battle  of  Sekigahara  and  the  final  triumph 
of  lyeyasu,  refused  to  take  refuge  in  the  national  custom 
of  hara-kiri.  He  and  his  Christian  companions  submitted 
to  the  shame  of  death  at  the  hands  of  the  public  exe- 
cutioner. Up  to  the  first  quarter  of  the  nineteenth  century 
man  was  decidedly  a  fighting  animal.  Every  gentleman  wore  a 
sword  which  was  his  protection  against  personal  affront.  Now  the 
question  that  might  arise  was  a  question  of  affront  from  a  quarter 
too  high  for  the  victim  to  resent.  There  was  a  self-adjusting 
balance  here  between  the  lord  and  the  retainer.  If  they  had  their 
duty  of  loyalty  to  him,  he  had  in  turn  his  duty  to  them,  and  a 
gratuitous  insult  to  one  against  the  accepted  code  would  quickly 
bring  the  others  to  his  support.  The  public  opinion  of  the  clan 
here  operated  certainly  and  quickly  to  determine  the  wrong,  and 
that  being  done  the  remedy  lay  easily  to  hand.  The  lord  was  a 
leader  not  an  absolutist.  He  had  no  more  right  to  be  disloyal  to 
the  clan  than  they  to  him.  The  man  who  rode  rough-shod  over 
the  feelings  of  his  retainers  quickly  found  his  various  Achilles  sulk- 
ing in  their  tents.  The  code  of  honour  was  too  exacting  to  allow 
a  man's  self-respect  to  suffer.  The  world  was  wide.  He  could 
retire  to  his  farm,  or  take  his  sword  elsewhere  without  any  loss 
of  prestige.  Not  that  treason  was  ever  condoned  any  more  in  the 
West  than  among  the  Japanese  samurai.  Count  Julian  for  his 
treason  to  his  country  will  always  be  held  in  infamy  by  his  country- 
men, but  if  he  had  plunged  his  sword  through  Roderic's  body  they 
would  equally  have  applauded  him.  Even  though  they  would  have 
to  take  off  his  head  afterward.  As  the  religious  bond  has  loosened 
in  these  present  days,  so  suicide  due  purely  to  pessimism  or  inability 
to  support  the  strain  of  modern  life  has  become  more  frequent. 
From  a  scientific  point  of  view  it  is  to  be  condemned  on  ground  of 
violation  of  Nature's  law.  Nature  provides  for  our  removal  and 
should  be  allowed  to  operate  in  her  own  way.  Besides,  a  man  rep- 
resents so  many  units  of  energy  to  act  or  to  be  acted  on  by  external 
forces.  Government  still  pursues  the  attempted  suicide,  nominally 


IWASHIRO    WAY  91 

on  grounds  of  a  violation  of  Statute  Law  based  on  God's  law,  but 
really  on  the  scientific  ground  that  a  man  belongs  to  the  com- 
munity and  not  to  himself.  The  latter  ground  is  of  course  the 
only  rational  one.  To  punish  a  man  for  failing  to  kill  himself 
carries  with  it  a  degree  of  bathos  that  should  throw  a  ray  of 
cheerfulness  even  into  the  mind  of  the  would-be  suicide,  who  if 
he  still  remains  in  the  same  frame  of  mind  will  certainly  not  be 
deterred  by  any  such  punishment  from  seeking  his  voluntary 
exit  from  his  troubles  at  a  more  favourable  opportunity,  or  if  he 
has  changed  his  mind  will  certainly  not  regard  as  punishment  the 
lesser  evil  as  compared  with  the  greater  he  has  just  escaped. 

Suicide  therefore  in  Europe  was  modified  by  the  far  wider 
extension  of  a  man's  possibilities.  His  sphere  of  action  being 
thus  extended,  granting  the  reaching  of  an  impasse  in  his  present 
surroundings  he  could  find  a  field  more  congenial  to  his  honour. 
He  was  not  in  such  a  position  that  he  had  tamely  to  submit  his 
honour  to  the  will  of  another  or  seek  the  only  outlet  available — - 
self-destruction.  As  strictly  as  any  Japanese  samurai  was  the 
European  gentleman  bound  to  loyalty  to  his  chief,  but  if  that  chief 
failed  him  he  could  transfer  his  services  to  another  field.  The 
field  of  European  politics  was  wide,  and  this  could  be  done  without 
detriment  to  his  honour.  In  the  West  as  in  the  East  he  who 
fought  for  the  destruction  of  his  own  people  was  regarded  with 
the  scorn  due  to  a  renegade,  and  but  little  respected  by  those  who 
made  use  of  him.  There  was  plenty  of  fighting  without  having 
to  meet  one's  former  companions  in  arms  on  the  field  of  battle. 
Various  were  the  nations  represented  in  the  armies  that  followed 
the  banner  of  the  crusading  chief  or  later  of  one  of  the  "  free 
companies,"  and  to  the  standard  of  William  the  Silent  or  of 
Prince  Eugene  flocked  the  best  swords  in  Europe.  With  the 
same  underlying  motives  for  the  act,  suicide  in  Japan  took  a  dif- 
ferent development.  A  peculiar  feature  of  Japanese  political  life 
cut  off  any  such  career  to  the  Japanese  samurai  In  disfavour 
with  his  lord  he  had  to  become  either  a  ronin — a  more  or  less  out 
of  the  pale  character  in  so  far  as  he  had  no  support  but  his  own 


92  SAKURAMBO 

sword — or  to  commit  suicide.  There  was  no  middle  course.  Jap- 
anese politics  were  purely  domestic  and  very  local.  They  had  no 
international  relations,  for  the  temporary  invasion  of  the  continent 
through  Korea  could  hardly  be  classed  as  anything  but  episodes. 
Gibbon  has  graphically  described  the  condition 'of  the  man  who 
had  become  a  source  of  offence  and  a  stumbling  block  to  the  mas- 
ter of  the  Roman  world.  Within  the  bounds  of  civilization  there 
was  no  place  for  him  to  hide  his  head.  In  the  wide  range  of  the 
body  politic  therefore,  when  it  became  a  question  of  death  or 
successful  rebellion,  the  two  influences  reacted  on  each  other  to  an 
extent  that  is  shown  in  the  fearful  tyranny  of  the  Emperors  and 
their  violent  deaths.  Roman  philosophy  was  far  too  much  ad- 
vanced to  grant  the  divinity  claimed  by  their  Emperors.  The 
Roman  at  heart  was  too  much  of  a  republican  to  admit  that  the 
Emperor  was  more  than  a  part  of  the  state.  Multitudes  would 
shout  "  Hail,  divine  Caesar,"  but  there  was  always  in  the  back- 
ground the  Ciceros,  and  Catos,  and  Senecas,  to  say  "  this  is  a  man, 
very  much  of  a  man."  In  fact,  in  this  very  crux  lies  the  parting 
of  the  ways  between  East  and  West.  To  the  West  the  divinity 
lay  in  the  sacredness  of  the  community  as  represented  in  the  man ; 
it  was  his  office  not  his  personality  that  was  sacred.  The  old 
republican  spirit  of  Rome  is  at  the  bottom  of  all  of  us.  "  Civis 
Romanus  Sum  "  fitted  well  into  the  Germanic  theory  of  the  state. 
And  whether  by  the  aid  of  the  Church  or  the  aid  of  common  sense, 
the  state  found  means  to  get  rid  of  the  Imperator  or  its  Rex  "  by 
divine  right  "  when  the  occasion  arose.  A  little  casuistry  or  defect 
in  genealogy  greasing  the  w^ays  for  his  descent.  To  the  East 
however  the  divinity  lay  in  the  monarch.  He  was  not  part  and 
parcel  of  the  community.  He  was  above  it  and  separated  from 
it  and  representative  of  the  gods  who  made  it.  This  divinity  was 
inherent  in  him,  not  a  gift  or  spirit  granted  to  him  on  his  becoming 
head  of  the  state.  A  laying  on  of  hands,  so  to  speak,  which  is  the 
only  sense  that  the  "  divine  right  of  kings  "  ever  attained  in  the 
West.  To  our  minds  of  to-day  it  is  hard  to  judge  the  illogical 
standpoint  of  a  seeing,  moving,  active  man  in  all  his  relations  take 


IWASHIRO    WAY  93 

on  this  attribute  of  divinity  as  an  inherent  part  of  his  nature.  He 
is  just  as  much  a  descendant  of  the  gods  in  his  previous  condition 
as  when  he  occupies  the  throne.  His  divine  nature  has  not 
changed.  In  the  twinkling  of  an  eye  all  the  former  conditions 
change,  and  the  man  who  a  short  time  previously  led  his  soldiers  in 
triumph  through  the  streets  as  a  successful  general,  by  the  accident 
of  death  to  his  predecessor,  becomes  death  to  any  mere  mortal  who 
looks  on  the  divinity  of  his  face.  Let  us  turn  to  good  old  "  down- 
right "  Montaigne  where  he  makes  Antigonus  answer  the  poet 
Hermodorus  who  has  compared  him  to  Phoebus  :  "  My  friend,  he 
that  emptieth  my  close  stool  knoweth  well,  there  is  no  such  matter." 
The  full  development  of  this  idea  of  divinity  is  probably  due 
to  China.  In  common  with  all  eastern  nations  and  some  western 
ones  the  Japanese  early  attributed  divine  origin  to  their  leaders, 
but  many  of  the  episodes  of  the  prehistoric  and  early  historic  times 
anything  but  endorse  the  more  extended  views  taken  later  on. 
With  the  adoption  —  sometime  subsequent  to  the  fourth  century 
A.  D.  —  of  Chinese  ideas  in  every  department  of  thinking,  Chinese 
ideals  were  made  the  standard,  and  the  teachings  of  Confucius  on 
the  subject  of  the  relation  between  inferior  and  superior,  parent 
and  child,  husband  and  wife,  became  the  religion,  so  to  speak,  of 
the  country.  With  the  retirement  of  the  Emperor  from  the  field 
of  active  politics,  practical  expression  of  loyalty  became  centred 
on  the  military  leader,  and  an  offence  against  that  leader  became 
an  offence  against  the  moral  code  by  which  the  samurai  was  direct- 
ing his  life.  Such  loyalty  driven  to  its  logical  conclusion  was  likely 
to  lead  him  in  two  directions  to  an  impossible  position.  Where  he 
would  find  his  will  in  collision  with  his  lord  ;  here  the  only  choice 
lay  between  becoming  a  ronin  or  masterless  man,  for  few  would 
care  to  harbour  him  thereby  bringing  the  vengeance  of  his  master 
down  on  them  ;  or  he  could  commit  suicide.  Again,  his  duty  lay 
in  following  his  master  to  the  end  of  any  course  he  chose  to  take, 
and  avenging  him  if  he  survived  him.  This  would  infallibly  lead 
him  to  a  collision  with  the  governing  power  of  the  land,  for  an 
inferior  had  no  right  to  raise  his  hand  against  a  superior.  As 


or  THE 
UNIVERSITY 

OF 


94  SAKURAMBO 

vengeance  however  was  specifically  required  by  the  Confucian  code, 
the  morality  of  the  vendetta  was  admitted  and  the  form  of  execu- 
tion took  the  kinder  one  of  suicide.  Hence  suicide  passed  from 
simply  a  form  of  death  sought  to  escape  intolerable  surrounding 
conditions  to  become  part  and  parcel  of  the  Code  of  Honour.  It 
was  the  necessary  concomitant  between  a  code  of  morals  which 
sanctioned  and  enforced  the  vendetta,  and  the  punishment  required 
by  outraged  law,  law  necessary  for  the  stability  of  any  community. 
Here  in  distinction  from  implied  condemnation  of  suicide  \ve  have 
its  apotheosis  in  public  opinion.  And  views  on  the  subject  have 
not  changed  in  those  modern  days.  Published  excuses  of  modern 
hara-kiri  are  usually  based  on  the  ground  that  by  the  suicide  the 
man's  usefulness  is  extended.  Living,  such  usefulness  is  ended, 
but  by  his  death  he  can  inspire  his  companions.  The  officer  who 
is  wounded  in  a  charge  commits  hara-kiri,  thereby  relieving  his 
men  of  the  necessity  of  taking  care  of  him  and  inspiring  them  to 
vengeance.  I  think  it  is  quite  sure  that  Japanese  troops  would 
need  no  such  inspiration,  and  in  the  West  instances  are  common 
where  the  fall  of  an  officer  leading  his  troops  has  had  quite  the 
reverse  effect  to  terminating  his  usefulness.  They  have  obeyed 
his  orders  to  go  forward  and  with  just  as  much  readiness  to  avenge 
him.  The  government  view  of  it  is  not  very  evident.  There  is  no 
external  sign  of  disapproval,  although  trained  men  have  such  value 
in  these  latter  days  of  scientific  warfare  that  it  is  hardly  to  be 
supposed  that  the  gratuitous  loss  of  a  man  they  have  been  at  no 
small  trouble  to  educate  to  his  present  efficiency  is  regarded  as 
balanced  by  considerations  of  the  effect  his  suicide  may  have  on  the 
morale  of  the  service.  For  the  morale  is  certainly  not  maintained 
by  any  such  anachronism  as  hara-kiri.  If  so,  so  much  the  worse 
for  the  service.  It  is  a  fact  however  that  har~-kiri  finds  general 
support  even  among  men  of  scientific  training  on  just  such  grounds 
of  expediency.  On  economic  grounds  it  will  die  out,  but  it  will  die 
hard  and  then  purely  on  the  ground  that  it  is  detrimental  to  enforce, 
such  a  code  when  men  are  valuable.  There  is  one  curious  feature 
about  the  Japanese  suicide  that  shows  up  the  ultra-conservatism  of 


IWASHIRO    WAY  95 

the  nation.  It  is  still  maintained  in  all  its  strictness  as  a  form  of  a 
code.  It  is  not  only  the  end  sought,  but  the  means  to  that  end 
have  remained  unchanged  since  the  early  days  when  it  came  into 
practice.  As  its  origin  is  remote  so  it  retains  but  slight  trace  of 
any  refinement  in  that  early  race  that  adopted  it.  That  part  of 
the  body  whose  influence  on  the  brain  is  most  clearly  indicated  is 
the  belly,  and  the  Japanese  in  common  with  other  primitive  nations 
made  it  the  seat  of  life  or  the  soul.  Uncertainty  of  hand  may  spoil 
the  attempt  to  take  life  by  reaching  the  heart  or  other  vital  organs. 
With  the  deficient  surgery  of  old  days  however  the  slashing  of  the 
entrails  was  an  absolutely  certain  means  of  ensuring  death,  and,  in 
the  manner  as  performed  by  the  Japanese,  a  speedy  one.  From  its 
primitive  intention  simply  of  taking  one's  life  it  has  passed  into 
a  formula  still  to  be  adhered  to  by  this  more  enlightened  age. 

Wakamatsu  however  has  more  cheerful  sights  than  these 
blood-stained  mementoes.  Coming  down  the  hill  from  the  temple 
I  was  soon  bowling  along  the  hills  to  a  little  side  valley  some  three 
miles  from  the  town,  and  in  which  was  located  the  little  hot  spring 
known  locally  as  Higashiyama  (East  Mountain).  If  the  Japanese 
town  in  the  plain  is  not  inviting,  often  these  mountain  hamlets  built 
along  the  sides  of  a  ravine  present  picturesque  elements.  Whether 
from  the  decided  flatness  of  the  architecture — there  is  but  little 
pleasing  about  a  Japanese  home  externally  except  the  roof — and 
lack  of  the  many  old  picturesque  bridges  such  a  common  feature 
in  the  West,  they  are  however  at  a  disadvantage  compared  to 
European  towns  of  the  same  class.  Higashiyama  was  up  to  the 
average.  The  road  wound  along  the  bank  of  the  brawling  little 
river  and  up  the  narrowing  valley,  until  near  the  head  came  in  sight 
a  group  of  roofs  lining  both  sides  of  the  stream.  The  houses 
beneath  them  were  mainly  inns,  and  devoted  to  the  refreshment  of 
both  the  outer  and  the, inner  man.  Just  across  the  bridge  at  the 
upper  end  of  the  hamlet  was  a  very  attractive  looking  one,  on  the 
edge  of  the  stream  and  looking  down  the  valley  and  across  the 
huddled  mass  of  rocks  below.  O  Kami  San  gave  me  a  pleasant 
welcome,  and  transfer  to  the  apartment  on  which  I  had  had  my  eye 


96  SAKURAMBO 

for  the  last  quarter  of  a  mile  was  a  matter  of  the  few  minutes 
necessary  to  remove  shoes.  The  feast  was  ordered,  and  donning 
a  bath-robe,  I  was  soon  on  my  way  to  the  bath  below.  Here  let  me 
say  that  I  have  heard  some  things  about  the  Japanese  bath  that  I 
have  not  found  so  universal  as  one  is  led  to  believe.  The  Japanese 
do  not  bathe  half  a  dozen  times  a  day.  And  the  Japanese  does  not 
spend  a  large  portion  of  the  day  in  a  bath-tub.  They  are  a  deci- 
dedly cleanly  people.  In  fact,  there  is  no  particular  reason  why 
they  should  not  be.  Nature  has  been  very  lavish  with  them  in  the 
matter  of  hot  water,  and  it  takes  very  little  courage  to  get  up  an 
inclination  for  that  kind  of  bathing.  I  have  seen  a  Japanese  using 
the  cold  bath  in  summer,  as  supplied  by  the  river,  but  I  never  heard 
of  one  breaking  the  ice  in  the  tub  to  get  his  plunge  on  a  winter 
morning,  a  by  no  means  unheard  of  feat  among  Anglo-Saxons. 
In  fact,  if  only  cold  water  is  available,  the  Japanese  labourer  will 
fight  as  shy  of  it  as  the  most  unwashed  peasant  of  southern  Europe. 
There  are  hundreds  of  houses  in  the  city  of  Yokohama  without  a 
tub  to  bathe  in,  and  many  a  household  would  find  it  absolutely 
impossible  to  find  the  funds  for  the  charcoal  necessary  to  heat  the 
water.  It  is  even  said  among  people  resident  in  Japan  that  their 
servants  do  not  use  the  tub.  Now  this  too  is  a  fact,  but  does  not 
imply  that  the  occupants  of  the  hundreds  of  little  houses  and  the 
said  servants  do  not  use  the  bath.  They  do,  but  it  is  at  the  public 
bath-house  which  is  found  in  every  cho  or  ward,  and  its  chimney 
begins  to  pour  out  smoke  about  noon  and  its  swinging  lamp  marked 
Furoba  is  the  mecca  of  a  stream  of  people  from  early  afternoon 
until  late  at  night.  The  Japanese  not  only  bathes  but  he  bathes  in 
public,  and  enjoys  not  only  the  hot  water  but  the  chatter  of  his 
surroundings.  In  a  sense  it  is  a  social  gathering.  A  resort — for 
the  lower  classes — just  as  much  as  among  the  Italians  in  the  old 
Roman  days. 

As  with  our  plunge  baths,  found  in  so  many  eastern  cities  and 
on  the  Pacific  coast  and  at  some  springs,  the  bath  is  for  common 
use  and  therefore  requires  some  preliminaries  before  entering  it. 
O  Kami  San  took  me  to  an  apartment  in  which  was  a  large  square 


IWASHIRO    WAY  97 

wooden  tub  fifteen  feet  to  a  side  and  about  two  feet  deep.  It 
differed  from  the  ordinary  Japanese  bath  in  that  hot  water  from 
the  spring  was  constantly  entering  it  and  running  out  by  an  over- 
flow. All  around  this  tub  and  nearly  on  a  level  with  it — the  edge 
of  the  tub  being  a  couple  of  inches  only  above  the  floor  level — the 
floor  sloped  to  the  tub,  leaving  however  a  crack  about  ar»  inch  wide 
around  it.  Disrobing,  I  put  myself  in  the  hands  of  the  inn  boy, 
and  after  being  thoroughly  soaped  and  scrubbed  from  head  to  foot 
was  drenched  with  hot  water  until  every  trace  of  soap  was  removed, 
the  soap  and  water  of  course  running  off  through  the  crack  to  the 
drain  below  the  tub.  Then  I  was  ready  for  the  real  bath,  and 
getting  into  the  tub  stewed  at  pleasure.  Higashiyama  was  not  a 
particularly  severe  test  as  the  water  was  but  little,  if  at  all,  above 
40°  C.  These  natural  hot  springs  have  at  least  this  advantage, 
that  nature  regulates  the  heating  apparatus  arid  is  a  far  more 
regular  guide  than  nesan,  whose  only  criterion  of  excessive  tem- 
perature is  boiling.  There  is  a  certain  consideration  due  one's 
fellow  travellers  that  makes  me  somewhat  chary  of  adding  cold 
water  to  the  bath,  and  thereby  spoiling  it  for  the  Japanese  who 
are  accustomed  to  take  it  much  hotter  than  Europeans.  They  do 
not  hesitate  to  do  that  themselves,  but  the  standards  are  so  different 
that  the  mean  puts  it  out  of  use  for  them  until  it  can  heat  up  again. 
I  should  say  that  the  love  of  hot  water  seems  to  date  from  the 
dawn  of  history,  for  in  the  very  twilight  period  of  the  gods,  their 
divinityships  had  to  content  themselves  with  the  ordinary  facilities 
afforded  to  him  who  travels  in  waste  places,  and  perform  their 
ablutions  in  the  river  and  mountain  streams — with  fearfully  prolific 
results  if  the  old  legends  of  their  offspring  thus  born  are  to  be  given 
any  credence.  Izanagi,  the  creator  of  Japan,  thus  gave  rise  on  his 
return  from  Hell  to  some  score  of  deities.  While  my  bath  was 
in  progress  O  Kami  San  had  fished  a  trout  out  of  her  fish-pond, 
knocked  together  a  little  omelet,  and  was  ready  to  provide  the  inner 
as  well  as  the  outer  man  with  raiment,  and  very  pleasant  memories 
of  the  little  inn  were  those  I  took  away  with  me. 

From  Wakamatsu  my  way  lay  south  through  the  mountains 

7 


98  SAKURAMBO 

to  Nikko.  The  next  morning  I  left  very  comfortable  quarters  at  the 
Shimizuya — one  of  the  better  class  of  Japanese  inns  and  beautifully 
gotten  up  in  its  appointments.  Polished  wood,  natural  fretwork, 
beautiful  screens,  were  the  more  material  surroundings,  and  the 
human  machinery  was  noticeable  for  neatness,  completeness,  and 
quietness.  The  publican  does  not  differ  much  the  world  over  and 
Japanese  inns  furnish  the  usual  types,  ranging  from  the  modest 
establishment  of  some  fishing  village  where  the  clientele  are  the 
smaller  commercial  man  stopping  for  the  convenience  of  some  little 
coasting  steamer,  or  the  countryman  on  one  of  his  minor  mis- 
sions— purchases  at  the  local  centre  or  to  meet  the  aforesaid  drum- 
mer— to  the  aristocratic  establishment  whose  clientele  is  drawn 
from  the  upper  stratum  of  the  land  and  where  coarseness  or  noisy 
merriment  would  be  as  much  out  of  place  as  in  one  of  our  own 
more  recherche  hotels.  The  life  of  a  Japanese  inn  rarely  begins 
before  the  close  of  the  business  day.  The  Japanese  travels  very 
light,  his  personal  impedimenta  consisting  of  a  very  small  grip  or 
what  will  readily  be  folded  into  a  large  handkerchief,  the  more 
frequent  companion  of  his  travels  and  usually  more  or  less  pleasing 
in  colour.  All  day  he  is  busy  on  his  rounds.  If  a  drummer,  his 
samples  go  with  him  on  his  own  back  in  the  shape  of  a  huge  pile  of 
boxes  in  which  economy  of  space  has  been  made  a  fine  art,  or  on 
the  back  of  a  porter  if  too  elevated  to  do  that  part  of  the  labour 
himself.  Only  at  nightfall  does  he  seek  an  inn  and  a  Japanese 
commercial  house  then  takes  on  a  great  bustle.  The  nesans  are 
busy  running  with  tea  trays  and  kimonos,  for  the  first  thing  after 
getting  fairly  ensconced  with  his  modest  belongings  is  the  bath,  and 
the  inn  relieves  him  of  any  necessity  for  providing  garments  for 
that  purpose.  In  a  country  where  privacy  is  unknown,  and  social 
interference  may  be  said  to  have  become  as  much  a  part  of  the 
natural  life  as  with  the  assemblages  of  our  zoological  gardens, 
where  the  overpowering  interest  of  the  individual,  so  prominent  in 
western  life,  are  not  the  isolating  medium  as  with  us,  the  inn  is 
one  big  family.  Often,  if  crowded,  three,  four,  or  more  are 
chummed  together  in  one  room.  Sake  and  geisha  and  talk  while 


IWASHIRO    WAY  99 

away  the  evening  hours,  and  such  an  establishment,  where  paper 
screens  are  the  only  partition  wall,  give  but  small  chance  of  sleep 
until  the  last  merrymakers  have  gone  to  rest  and  the  tinkle  of  the 
samisen  has  ceased  for  the  night.  To  see  a  Japanese  curled  up 
on  his  futons  and  sleeping  next  door  to  the  most  merciless  racket 
is  such  a  common  occurrence  that  one  is  led  to  believe  that  they 
must  be  much  less  sensitive  to  noise  than  the  average  European. 

At  Shimizuya  however  there  was  no  such  experience  to  go 
through.  In  the  morning  nesan  appeared  with  the  pickled  plums 
and  tea  and  the  more  valued  assurance  that  in  spite  of  threatening 
appearance  it  was  not  likely  to  rain,  which  prophecy  held  good  until 
near  the  end  of  the  day  and  the  journey;  and  breakfast  over,  I 
was  sent  speeding  south  over  the  plain  at  fhe  moderate  pace  that 
two  coolies  would  take  who  had  nearly  a  three  days'  job  in  front 
of  them.  The  Japanese  coolie  is  by  no  means  so  bad  as  he  is 
painted — or  so  good.  His  ethical  standard  is  not  extravagantly 
high,  in  fact  it  is  scandalously  low  at  times,  and  it  is  just  as  well 
the  average  foreigner  is  unable  to  understand  the  full  nature  of  the 
subjects  of  conversation  and  the  jests  which  give  rise  to  so  much 
merriment  among  his  coolies  and  passersby,  for  the  exchange  of 
compliments  among  them  is  by  no  means  always  suited  to  delicate 
ears.  His  occupation  however  is  greatly  aided  by  his  wits,  and 
while  dragging  a  ricksha  is  by  no  means  a  highly  intellectual 
pursuit,  capturing  his  prey  and  squeezing  it  to  the  last  go  sen  is  an 
accomplishment.  Fares  are  regulated  by  the  police,  and  the  guilds 
of  ricksha  men  are  sharply  checked  up ;  but  indiscriminate  appeal 
to  the  police  is  not  always  advisable.  The  men  have  their  bounds 
and  cannot  be  made  to  go  out  of  them;  and  a  traveller's  reputation 
goes  ahead  of  him  by  a  system  of  wireless  telegraphy.  Given  the 
proper  conditions  and  an  unreasonable  disposition  one  can  well  find 
himself  under  the  necessity  of  shouldering  the  baggage  and  march- 
ing out  of  some  untravelled  spot  as  best  he  can.  Coolies  of  every 
kind  have  disappeared  like  magic,  the  field  labour  (at  30  sen  a  day) 
has  become  so  important  that  four  and  five  times  that  amount  can- 
not tempt  a  man,  a  cow,  or  even  a  woman  to  come  forward.  The 


100  SAKURAMB6 

ricksha  man  is  usually  to  be  found  in  a  town  of  any  size,  and  which 
of  necessity  has  communication  by  highway  with  the  outside  world, 
but  he  is  not  often  found  in  the  small  villages  of  mountain  districts, 
and  simply  reaching  such  a  place,  even  if  on  a  highway,  is  no  guar- 
antee that  one  can  exchange  one's  legs  for  an  easier  means  of 
progress.  Incidentally  one  feature  of  travel  in  Japan  can  be  re- 
ferred to,  and  that  is  safety.  People  often  complain  of  the  blank 
which  is  brought  to  them  to  be  filled  out  with  information  for  the 
police.  The  questions  at  times  seem  superfluous — as  to  age,  in- 
tended route,  and  family  relations  even  unto  the  third  and  fourth 
generation — and  at  times  they  are  followed  up  by  a  personal  inter- 
view, particularly  in  the  case  of  a  foreigner,  so  as  to  make  it 
troublesome.  As  a  matter  of  fact  and  largely  as  a  matter  of  form, 
Japanese  have  to  fill  out  the  same  blank,  and  whatever  the  motive 
of  being  so  particular  in  the  case  of  foreign  travellers  it  can  be 
passed  over  in  the  knowledge  that  it  makes  his  travelling  very  safe. 
It  would  be  very  difficult  for  a  foreigner  to  disappear  in  Japan. 
His  personal  appearance  differs  so  from  the  native  that,  among  a 
people  who  spend  their  time  in  noting  all  the  petty  details  going  on 
around  them,  some  one  is  bound  to  have  observed  his  movements 
even  in  such  frequented  places  as  the  treaty  ports.  Nay,  even  in 
visits  to  the  Yoshiwara  and  such  places  his  entrance  and  exit  are 
reported  to  and  noted  by  the  police;  which  fact  would  be  clerical 
and  female  sight-seers  can  bear  in  mind.  In  the  country  he  could 
not  disappear.  He  is  registered  from  hotel  to  hotel.  The  ricksha 
men  who  take  him  are  known  and  are  responsible  for  his  delivery  at 
the  other  end  of  his  journey.  As  all  are  not  saints  in  any  calling  of 
life  so  the  ricksha  man  is  by  no  means  free  from  black  sheep  among 
his  flock,  but  the  opportunities  of  such  gentry  are  confined  to  the 
petty  fleecing  that  they  can  effect  by  their  wits,  and  in  which  they  are 
white  as  driven  snow  compared  to  the  honourable  fraternity  of  cab 
drivers.  They  are  well  up  in  the  points  of  interest  along  their  own 
particular  stamping  ground,  and  no  better  guide  is  to  be  found  than 
a  kurumaya  who  takes  an  interest  in  his  fare.  The  kurnma  or 


IWASHIRO    WAY  101 

ricksha  as  a  means  of  conveyance,  I  think,  has  been  grossly  over- 
praised. It  is  the  best  there  is  in  the  country,  but  there  its  good 
qualities  end.  The  motion  partakes  somewhat  of  that  of  a  dog- 
cart. One  must  absolutely  recline  or  sit  bolt  upright,  and  when 
hours  are  to  be  passed  on  the  road  both  of  these  attitudes  are  by 
no  means  unqualified  joy.  When  travelling  through  the  moun- 
tains where  real  work  is  to  be  done  it  is  necessary  to  have  the  hood 
up  so  that  the  pushman  can  get  some  purchase  on  the  vehicle. 
There  is  no  substitute  for  it  however  but  one's  legs,  which  indeed 
are  to  be  recommended  when  time  permits  and  they  are  available. 
A  horse  would  be  as  troublesome  as  Wang's  elephant,  as  to  pro- 
viding provender  and  finding  shelter  for  it  when  the  day's  journey 
was  finished. 

The  first  part  of  my  route  lay  over  the  Wakamatsu  plain. 
Xeaf  the  end  of  the  valley,  then  narrowing  to  the  Funakotoge 
(pass),  we  took  to  the  hills  and  soon  had  risen  to  some  height. 
The  view  toward  Bandaisan  and  Wakamatsu  was  beautiful.  The 
road  was  well  graded  and  only  near  the  top  of  the  pass  was  it 
necessary  to  do  any  walking.  It  was  a  pretty  ride,  winding  under 
the  trees,  around  the  little  ravines,  and  giving  bits  of  sylvan  scenery 
much  like  home,  perhaps  because  of  the  absence  of  houses  and  tea- 
sheds  and  such  marks  peculiar  to  the  particular  species  of  the  genus 
homo  inhabiting  the  land.  It  is  remarkable  how  man  puts  his 
mark  on  a  land.  The  summer  days  spent  in  wood  or  field,  lying  on 
turf  or  rock,  idly  chewing  a  blade  of  grass  and  without  set  purpose 
letting  the  eyes  roam  over  the  surroundings,  is  stamping  on  boy- 
hood's mind  a  standard  landscape  that  will  never  be  forgotten.  A 
landscape  containing  a  host  of  minute  details  of  which  at  the  time 
the  observer  has  no  consciousness,  even  if  it  be  but  a  blurred  image 
of  some  distant  house  or  a  column  of  smoke  rising  from  some 
unseen  habitation  but  whose  familiar  outlines  he  can  easily  frame 
in  his  mind's  eye.  Unconsciously  in  these  early  years  he  is  adding 
to  his  sense  impressions,  to  the  photographs  stored  away  in  mem- 
ory, the  bias  of  his  race  mentality.  He  is  adding  that  element, 
external  to  the  scene  in  front  of  him,  and  from  which  he  never  will 


102  SAKURAMBO 

be  able  to  free  himself.  Hence  certain  types  of  scenery  have  the 
pleasing  familiarity  of  old  friends.  We  are  at  home  in  them  and 
drop  our  mental  alertness  or  unconsciously  critical  attitude  of  com- 
parison. This  same  effect  can  be  carried  into  other  countries.  In 
such  a  wide  range  as  between  England  and  New  Zealand  the  land- 
scape bears  the  same  stamp  of  familiarity  to  our  minds,  the  same 
vistas  of  sea  and  shore,  and  we  feel  at  home  beside  a  Welsh  brook 
or  looking  down  from  the  heights  of  Dunedin.  Some  of  this  sense 
of  familiarity  is  lost  among  peoples  whose  kinship  is  not  so  close  to 
us — as  on  the  continent  of  Europe,  but  a  good  part  remains.  Lit- 
erature, our  reading,  is  partly  responsible  for  this.  One  never  has 
this  sense  of  familiarity  in  Japan.  The  landscape  always  remains 
strange,  and  involuntarily  the  faculty  of  comparison — essentially  a 
hostile  faculty — is  at  work  within  us.  In  part  this  is  due  to  Nature 
herself.  Japan  is  a  volcanic  country  and  a  small  country,  where 
Nature  has  seen  fit  to  cram  a  good  deal  of  material  into  a  limited 
space.  There  is  a  paucity  of  the  rounded  outline  so  familiar  to 
American  or  European  eyes.  Nature  does  not  seem  to  have  had 
time  to  soften  down  her  outlines.  To  an  Hawaiian  the  outline  of 
the  Japanese  hills  would  seem  familiar.  The  main  difficulty  is 
however  the  human  element,  and  a  thatched  roof,  a  glimpse  of 
tatami,  or  the  barley  or  wheat  spread  on  mats  and  lying  in  the  sun, 
at  once  casts  an  unfamiliar  outre  tint  over  the  landscape.  Add  the 
blue  cotton  tights  of  the  native  himself,  and  even  if  one  has  been 
successful  in  mentally  eliminating  the  bamboo-grass  springing  up 
between  the  oaks,  chestnuts,  and  birches,  we  are  at  once  back  in 
Japan  and  half  way  round  the  world  again  from  our  old  home. 
Lying  on  the  border  of  a  Maine  lake  or  on  the  bank  of  the  Merced 
River  in  the  Yosemite  we  have  the  sense  of  restful  familiarity,  a 
feeling  that  never  is  felt  by  the  side  of  any  Japanese  stream. 

On  this  walk  I  saw  for  the  first  and  only  time  a  mamushi,  the 
only  poisonous  snake  found  on  the  main  island  of  Japan.  It  is  of 
the  viper  species,  and  the  particular  specimen  was  about  a  foot  in 
length,  of  inconspicuous  markings  and  a  dirty  brownish  yellow 
colour.  I  had  stretched  out  my  hand  to  pick  a  flower  growing  in  the 


IWASHIRO    WAY  103 

cleft  of  a  rock  and  noted  him  just  in  time,  for  he  was  coiled  close  by 
and  with  no  idea  of  making  off.     A  blow  from  my  stick  soon  settled 
him   and   the  ricksha   men   identified  him.      The   peasants   have 
curious  superstitions  about  them.     I  had  described  to  me  by  a 
witness  the  process  of  skinning  the  wriggling  living  serpent,  cutting 
off  the  head  and  gouging  out  and  eating  then  and  there  the  eyes, 
the  rest  of  his  snakeship  going  into  the  peasant's  basket  for  some 
subsequent  occult  proceedings.     The  lucky  finder  by  this  perform- 
ance was  ensured  against  sickness  for  the  rest  of  the  year.     I 
omitted  the  ceremony.     They  figure  largely  in  the  pharmacopoeia 
of  the  lower  classes,  and  pickled  mamushi  fresh  and  stale  are  a 
matter  of  sale  and  barter.     There  was  no  view  from  the  top  of  the 
pass  and  the  road  down  the  other  side  became  decidedly  worse. 
The  rest  of  the  day's  journey  was  through  most  picturesque  river 
and  valley  country,  settled  enough  to  add  human  interest  to  the 
scene,  and  with  the  contrasting  beauty  of  man's  cultivation  of  the 
-soil  and  the  wild  and  rugged  on  Nature's  side  with  smiling,  peace- 
ful touches.     At  one  point  we  left  the  rickshas  and  walked  through 
one  of  the  numerous  gorges  along  a  path  in  places  supported  by 
.arms  resting  against  the  rock  wall  towering  above  us,  and  the  river 
boiling  along  some  twenty  feet  below,  crossing  back  again  and 
rejoining  our  vehicles  near  a  hamlet  called  Yadoshima.     At  places 
through  this  mountain  country  I  ventured  to  refill  my  water  bottle. 
I  say  "  ventured  "  advisedly,  for  one  must  be  able  to  get  a  very 
good  idea  of  the  source  of  the  water.     There  may  be  a  little  plateau 
above  draining  its  poisonous  irrigation  canal  into  the  sparkling 
brook.     Some  miles  of  this  mountain  country  brought  me  to  a 
wider  valley  in  the  centre  of  which  was  the  little  town  of  Tajima, 
twenty-five  miles  from  Wakamatsu.     Just  how  many  the  inn  could 
accommodate  "  though  puzzling  was  not  beyond  conjecture."    Two 
tiny  rooms  were  cut  off  at  one  end,  and  when  we  were  ensconced 
we  filled  the  house.     As  a  matter  of  fact  "  one  mat,  one  man  " 
measurement  would  enable  quite  a  large  party  to  find  quarters.     A 
great  deal  of  tobacco  is  grown  all  through  this  district,  and  every 
farmhouse  through  the  country  and  in  the  suburbs  of  the  town 


104  SAKURAMBO 

seemed  to  be  engaged  in  drying  and  curing  th£  leaf.  Tobacco  is 
one  of  the  foreign  importations  to  which  the  Japanese  early  took 
a  great  affection.  It  was  introduced  by  the  Portuguese  during  the 
early  intercourse  of  the  sixteenth  century.  We  will  not  hold  the 
Portuguese  responsible  for  the  present  product.  As  in  other  direc- 
tions the  native  has  presumably  modified  it  to  his  taste.  Japanese 
tobacco  hardly  deserves  the  name  of  that  noble  plant  (not  weed), 
and  it  is  unfortunate  that  they  did  not  disguise  it  under  a  native 
name.  French  tobacco  and  the  still  ranker  product  of  the  Italian 
monopoly  are  odours  of  "  Araby  the  Blest  "  compared  to  it.  In 
the  form  of  snuff  I  have  not  heard  of  its  use;  a  practice  by  the 
way  very  common  among  the  mountaineers  through  the  Allegheny 
region  of  the  United  States,  although  its  use  elsewhere  has  almost 
died  out.  Western  ideas  have  full  sway  and  much  better  enforce- 
ment among  the  Japanese  as  to  the  use  of  tobacco  by  minors,  and 
there  is  trouble  ahead  for  the  boy's  parents  who  have  been  warned 
against  allowing  their  children  to  smoke.  The  policeman  keeps  a 
sharp  eye  on  such  youngsters  and  as  the  registration  system  is  very 
complete  the  age  is  a  matter  of  easy  and  prompt  determination. 

The  next  day  was  a  repetition  of  the  previous  treat  of  river, 
gorge,  and  mountain  scenery,  bringing  me  at  night  to  a  prettily 
situated  little  inn  which  makes  up  the  hot  spring  resort  known  as 
Kawaji.  The  bath  was  a  large  pool  close  to  the  bank  of  the  river, 
and  was  swarming  with  Japanese,  male,  female,  and  kodomo 
created  he  them.  The  river  itself  looked  very  tempting  on  the  hot 
August  afternoon.  There  was  a  convenient  eddy,  a  natural  basin, 
and  it  was  much  to  be  preferred  to  the  swarm  of  humanity  close 
at  hand,  so  I  "  tubbed  "  there  to  my  own  great  satisfaction  and 
aroused  curiosity  of  my  neighbours.  The  Japanese  are  convinced 
as  to  the  more  or  less  "  eccentricity  "  (politely  speaking)  of  the 
foreigner,  but  here  was  a  convincing  case  under  their  eyes.  Not 
only  a  deliberate  immersion  in  cold  water  but  a  deliberate  choice  of 
an  unnecessary  evil.  If  the  question  de  lunatico  inquirendo  had  to 
come  before  that  jury  of  "  Japs  "  I  would  have  no  show.  We 
got  out  of  the  mountains  the  next  day,  through  more  fine  scenery 


IWASHIRO    WAY  105 

and  over  as  bad  a  road  as  I  have  travelled  in  Japan.  Walking 
was  out  of  the  question  as  the  road  was  ankle  deep  in  mud  from 
side  to  side,  through  which  treacherous  depths  yawned,  such  ruts  as 
only  the  years  of  traffic  of  a  Japanese  road  can  produce.  Stones 
and  bowlders  were  hidden  under  this  glutinous  covering,  making 
the  road  resemble  to  some  degree  the  bed  of  a  mountain  torrent. 
In  places  the  ricksha  men  lifted  the  whole  apparatus,  vehicle  and 
rider,  and  carried  it  on  to  the  next  piece  of  dry  ground.  They 
were  a  hardy  mountain  lot  of  men,  very  different  from  the  same 
fraternity  as  found  in  the  large  towns  of  the  plain.  Individually 
they  were  most  of  them  going  to  get  but  little  beside  their  "  gift 
money  "  at  the  end  of  the  trip.  At  Tajima  they  had  gambled  most 
of  the  future  away  and  the  lucky  man,  hiring  a  substitute,  had 
hied  him  back  to  Wakamatsu  to  blow  it  in  on  ease  and  sake. 
Gambling  is  most  strictly  forbidden  and  relentlessly  pursued  by  the 
government.  And  justly  so,  for  the  lower  class  Japanese  has  but 
little  idea  of  the  future ;  any  more  than  the  Thomas  cat  on  the  back 
fence.  He  lives  strictly  for  to-day  and  lets  to-morrow  take  care 
of  itself,  and  a  surplus  in  hand  proceeds  to  blow  it  in  at  once.  The 
government  does  its  best  to  correct  this  spirit  of  improvidence 
so  fatal  to  the  material  progress  of  the  nation.  We  came  out  on 
the  plain  and  crossed  the  river  at  Xaka-iwa,  a  well  known  picnic 
resort  near  Xikko.  The  scene  is  here  very  picturesque,  looking  up 
and  down  the  river  which  is  divided  by  an  island,  and  hence  the. 
name — "  centre  rock."  There  is  no  tea-house  worthy  of  the  name, 
but  an  hour's  run  across  the  plain  took  me  into  Imaichi,  a  town  on 
the  railway,  and  the  Reiheishi  Kaido,  that  famous  avenue  leading 
into  Nikko. 


IV 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE 

"  E  poi  il  dolore  e  un  gran  ricostituente  dell'  uomo  credete  e  in  certi 
casi  e  un  confortante  indizio  di  vitalita  morale,  perche  dove  non  vi 
e  dolore,  vi  e  cancrena." — Malombra. 

From  Imaichi  to  Nikko  is  one  of  the  most  striking  sections 
of  a  grand  highway  that  stretches  across  the  country  for  more  than 
twenty  miles.  The  very  narrowness  of  the  roadway  adds  to  the 
great  height  of  the  ancient  cryptomerias  closely  lining  the  sides 
and  walling  it  in  from  the  surrounding  country.  In  places  sunk 
between  grassy  walls,  gradually  increased  in  height  as  the  roadway 
between  them  slowly  wore  away  beneath  the  feet  of  generations  of 
travellers,  it  has  the  appearance  of  a  long  green  tunnel,  but  this  is 
soon  relieved  by  the  reappearance  of  the  smiling  countryside,  the 
rushing  river  close  at  hand,  and — to  right  and  left — the  forest- 
clad  hills.  One  traveller,  in  days  of  the  past,  moved  along  this 
road  unconscious  even  of  the  pomp  surrounding  him.  The  Sho- 
gun,  carried  to  his  tomb,  recked  little  of  the  beauty  of  the  world 
about  him.  Those  who  carried  him  probably  thought  more  about 
their  prospects  under  his  successor.  We  of  to-day  can  follow  it 
with  far  lighter  heart  up  through  the  long  village  of  Hachi-ishi 
or  lower  Nikko  to  the  stone  steps  mounting  the  slopes  of  the  hill 
until,  at  the  end  of  a  broad  avenue,  we  stand  under  a  great  stone 
torii  and  in  front  of  the  most  beautiful  temples  in  Japan.  Here 
in  close  proximity  lie  buried  two  men  who  put  their  stamp  on  a 
nation  as  few  men  have  done — lyeyasu  the  great  and  lyemitsu  the 
little,  grandfather  and  grandson.  The  system  devised  by  the  first 
and  carried  to  perfection  by  the  second  so  peculiarly  fitted  into  the 
previous  history  of  this  island  country  that  it  is  well  worth  going 
into  such  history  to  some  little  extent.  Especially  of  that  earlier 
portion  of  it  of  which  comparatively  little  is  heard  in  popular  form. 

106 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE         107 

Previous  to  the  close  of  the  fifth  century  A.  D.  Japanese  his- 
tory is  extremely  vague.  There  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  the 
people  had  any  other  means  of  recording  events  except  by  oral 
tradition.  The  accounts  of  those  times  are  full  of  miraculous 
events  and  still  more  miraculous  periods.  Chinese  and  Korean 
notices  begin  about  the  first  century  of  our  era.  China  at  that 
time  extended  her  influence  to  northern  Korea,  and  there  were 
Chinese  resident  officials  occupied,  as  usual,  in  scribbling  wonderful 
information  as  to  everything  that  they  saw  and  heard  for  the 
benefit  of  the  imperial  throne.  The  Koreans  themselves  quickly 
took  up  Chinese  learning,  to  hand  it  on  some  three  centuries  later 
to  their  neighbours,  the  Japanese.  In  the  first  four  centuries  there- 
fore of  the  Christian  era  we  hear  of  the  Japanese  mainly  in  the 
unenviable  light  of  piratical  descents  on  Korea  to  get  what  plunder 
they  can  and  to  carry  off  slaves.  They  are  described  as  a  brave, 
hard  drinking,  hard  fighting  people,  inhabiting  very  roughly  built 
huts  or  houses,  moving  their  habitations  from  place  to  place,  and 
spending  most  of  their  time  in  the  chase  or  in  wars  between  the 
petty  tribes.  In  fact,  at  the  corresponding  period,  they  resemble 
in  many  ways  our  Anglo-Saxon  ancestors  before  they  left  their 
German  home  to  settle  in  Britain.  At  the  end  of  the  fifth  century, 
however,  an  embassy  from  Korea  included  teachers  and  a  present 
of  the  Chinese  classics.  This  first  introduction  of  learning,  more 
probably  the  means  of  learning,  like  the  introduction  of  Christi- 
anity among  the  Saxons,  had  an  immediate  and  wonderful  effect. 
The  accounts  of  a  more  complex  social  system  are  very  specific. 
The  full  effect,  however,  was  not  obtained  until  the  reign  of  Kim- 
mei  (540-571  A.  D. ).  In  552  A.  D.  the  embassy  from  Korea 
included  a  gift  from  the  king  of  Kudara  of  a  statue  of  Buddha, 
together  with  the  holy  books.  Xow  this  introduction  of  Buddhism 
had  a  far  more  reaching  effect  than  appears  at  first  glance.  As 
in  the  case  of  Christianity  ten  centuries  later.  Buddhism  had  to 
fight  for  its  ground.  His  councillors  warned  the  Emperor — 
"  Our  kingdom  is  of  divine  origin,  and  the  Emperor  has  already 
many  gods  to  worship.  If  we  adore  those  of  foreign  kingdoms, 


108  SAKURAMBO 

our  own  will  be  angered."  Intimidated  therefore  by  this  advice  he 
gave  these  presents  to  one  of  his  ministers,  Soga  no  Iname,  who 
much  taken  with  the  new  cult  established  the  worship  of  the  image 
at  one  of  his  temples.  An  epidemic,  however,  following  soon 
after,  was  attributed  to  the  new  religion  and  the  temple  was  burnt 
to  the  ground  and  the  image  cast  into  the  river.  This  seems  to 
have  been  only  a  temporary  check,  for  in  the  next  reign  Buddhism 
is  again  violently  suppressed.  It  seems  to  have  taken  a  strong 
hold  in  the  family  of  Iname,  for  we  find  his  son  and  successor 
Umako  petitioning  to  be  allowed  to  maintain  the  cult  privately 
for  his  own  peace  of  mind,  which  was  granted  him ;  but  there  are 
already  two  parties  in  the  land  based  on  the  very  radical  ground 
of  differing  religion.  There  is  an  incident  of  some  interest  re- 
ferred to  in  this  reign  of  Bidatsu  (572-585  A.  D.),  namely,  the 
reception  of  a  letter  from  Korea  written  in  invisible  ink,  presumably 
some  cobalt  salt,  for  the  writing  appears  on  exposure  to  heat. 

A  development  quite  as  important  as  Buddhism  is  to  be  attrib- 
uted to  Bidatsu  reign.  When  he  first  appears  in  history  the 
Emperor  is,  in  plain  terms,  a  Mongol  chief,  fighting  at  the  head  of 
his  tribe,  and  it  is  only  after  wars  and  strife  that  his  tribe  establishes 
its  supremacy  over  the  tribes  of  kindred  nationality.  At  the  time 
we  are  speaking  of  the  system  had  apparently  been  reduced  to  a 
condition  not  unlike  the  days  of  the  Heptarchy  in  England.  As 
in  most  eastern  nations,  the  head  of  the  state  was  recognized  as  of 
divine  descent,  but  his  real  physical  power  depended  much  on  his 
ability  to  maintain  himself  in  his  position  of  supremacy.  A  system 
of  government  had,  however,  been  thoroughly  established,  and 
already  in  550  A.  D.  we  find  the  Emperor  surrounded  by  council- 
lors whose  opinions  have  much  weight,  and  furthermore  that 
precedents  are  being  given  their  value.  It  is  generally  assumed 
that  the  first  disappearance  of  the  Emperors  dates  from  Fujiwara 
times.  Umako,  who  seems  to  have  been  a  very  able  man,  was 
however  practically  a  Mayor  of  the  Palace.  He  had  supreme  in- 
fluence over  the  Prince  Regent  Umaya.  On  the  death  of  Bidatsu 
there  was  a  dispute  over  the  succession,  apparently  between  the 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE         109 

Buddhists  and  the  supporters  of  the  native  religion.  Umako 
gained  his  point,  had  his  antagonist  put  to  death,  placed  a  friendly 
prince  on  the  throne,  and  practically  reigned  as  minister.  Sujun, 
the  succeeding  Emperor,  showed  a  tendency  to  rebel  against  this 
subjection,  but  Umako  removed  him  by  assassination  and  estab- 
lished the  female  line  in  his  place.  When  he  died  about  625  A.  D. 
Buddhism  not  only  was  triumphantly  established  in  the  land  but 
Umako' s  son,  Soga  no  Yemisi,  succeeded  his  father  in  the  manage- 
ment of  the  kingdom. 

As  in  many  nations  of  primitive  times  the  priesthood  at  this 
date  seems  to  have  been  hereditary  in  two  families.  One  of  these 
was  known  as  the  Nakatomi.  Soga  no  Yemisi  as  prime'  minister 
carried  things  with  quite  as  high  a  hand  as  his  father.  He  asso- 
ciated his  son  Iruka  with  him,  who  was  still  more  disliked  than 
his  father.  Neither  the  nobility  or  the  Imperial  House  took  kindly 
to  this  supremacy  of  Soga  and  Iruka  in  the  Government  and  the 
reign  of  Kokyoku  (642-4  A.  D.),  sister  and  wife  of  the  preceding 
Emperor  Yomei,  was  marked  by  a  series  of  barons'  wars  in  which 
the  Minister  had  decidedly  the  best  of  it.  A  conspiracy  of  the 
princes  of  the  Imperial  House  was  given  practical  direction  by 
Nakatomi  Kametari,  and  at  the  height  of  his  power  and  security, 
Iruka  was  assassinated  in  the  very  presence  of  the  Empress.  The 
conspirators  then  completed  their  work  by  promptly  attacking  the 
house  of  Soga  himself,  in  the  flames  of  which  he  perished  together 
with  part  of  the  imperial  archives.  Nakatomi  stepped  into  his 
shoes  as  far  as  influence  in  the  Government  went,  and  up  to  the 
time  of  his  death  in  the  reign  of  the  Emperor  Tenji  (662-672 
A.  D. )  he  is  a  prominent  feature  in  everything  that  related  to  the 
Government.  It  is  worth  stopping  here  to  note  a  marked  differ- 
ence in  the  tone  of  the  annals  of  these  reigns.  Before  the  intro- 
duction of  Chinese  influence  they  show  palpably  the  roughness  of 
the  times.  Habits  are  gross  and  ceremonial  is  very  slack.  Both 
improve  very  rapidly  after  the  sixth  century,  and  ceremonial,  evi- 
dently copied  from  Chinese  models,  becomes  the  prominent  feature 
in  the  accounts  given  of  these  monarchs.  Offices  multiply,  and  the 


110  SAKURAMBO 

person  of  the  Emperor  is  soon  to  gain  a  sanctity  which  certainly 
before  that  time  it  did  not  possess.  Certainly  the  rough  and  ready 
time  of  Yuriaku  (457-477  A.  D.)  had  little  to  do  with  the  pomp 
and  ceremony  with  which  a  white  pheasant  is  brought  and  pre- 
sented to  the  Emperor  Kotoku  (645—654  A.  D.).  The  year  name 
is  changed  on  account  of  this  auspicious  event  and  all  the  prisoners 
in  the  Empire  are  set  at  liberty.  Yuriaku  would  have  eaten  the 
bird  and  made  a  few  more  prisoners  if  it  had  disagreed  with  him. 
The  reign  of  Tenji  (662-672  A.  D.)  could  pass  without  note. 
There  was  apparently  an  unsuccessful  attack  on  Korea  which  was 
repulsed,  but  which  furnished  a  complement  of  slaves,  an  element 
particularly  needed  in  the  new  civilization  of  the  nation  still  sadly 
lacking  in  skilled  workmen  as  teachers.  One  important  event 
marks  the  supremacy  of  old  Nakatomi  Kametari,  who  on  his  death 
is  given  the  family  name  of  Fujiwara,  and  to  whose  family  passes 
all  his  honours.  The  part  this  family  played  and  plays  in  Japanese 
annals  makes  this  a  notable  event.  We  should  also  remark  here 
two  important  features  of  Japanese  life  which  add  much  to  the 
strength  of  the  family  as  compared  with  Europe.  Namely,  polyg- 
amy and  adoption.  To  us,  this  would  only  imply  the  same  blood 
in  the  first  case,  polygamy.  Plurality  of  wives  and  concubinage 
is  a  great  safeguard  to  maintain  a  family  name  in  existence,  and 
when  this  is  bolstered  up  by  adoption — from  a  cadet  branch  if  pos- 
sible, or  a  stranger  if  necessary — it  practically  ensures  it. 

As  at  this  point  wre  enter  on  what  can  be  described  as  the 
Golden  Age  of  Japanese  art  and  literature,,  and  it  is  worth  while  to 
take  a  glance  at  the  attendant  conditions  which  in  some  ways 
differentiate  Japan  from  the  western  world.  The  conditions  under 
which  Japan  and  the  western  nations  started  on  their  careers  were 
radically  different.  So  much  so  as  to  give  a  peculiar  stamp  to  the 
civilization  evolved  and  due  to  these  attendant  conditions.  If  the 
Roman  Empire  had  fallen  under  the  blows  of  a  single  powerful 
antagonist,  it  is  fair  to  presume  that  the  onward  course  of  civiliza- 
tion would  have  had  but  little  check.  Rome,  however,  fell  under 
the  onset  of  different  nations,  and,  their  task  accomplished,  the 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE        111 

brunt  of  defending  their  spoils  against  rivals  fell  on  these  different 
nations.  The  fall  therefore  of  the  Empire  was  marked  by  a  hurly- 
burly,  of  which  South  Europe  was  the  battleground.  After  the 
Goth,  the  Lombard;  who  in  turn  succumbed  to  the  Frank.  The 
Franks  might  have  developed  at  this  early  date — the  eighth  century 
— a  great  literature  and  art,  and  as  they  began  to  do  three  centuries 
later,  but  they  were  too  busy  on  their  frontiers,  and  the  division  of 
the  kingdom  on  Charlemagne's  death  was  the  signal  for  another 
wild  struggle  covering  the  whole  of  Europe  from  what  is  now 
known  as  Russia  to  the  waters  of  the  Atlantic.  A  point  to  be  noted 
here  is  that  this  is  a  struggle  of  nations.  Internal  strife  will  halt 
and  impede  the  development  of  a  nation.  Foreign  strife  absolutely 
puts  an  end  to  it.  The  struggle  is  too  serious.  It  is  one  of 
national  existence,  and  in  that  age  one  of  life  and  death  to  the  men 
engaged  in  it.  But  little  respect  was  paid  to  anything  attached  to 
an  enemy.  His  very  memory  was  to  be  rooted  off  the  surface  of 
the  earth.  Hence  any  art  that  a  conquered  nation  had  succeeded 
in  developing  was  marked  for  destruction,  and  it  was  only  with 
time,  and  as  the  conqueror  had  opportunity  to  come  under  the 
influence  of  the  superior  civilization  of  the  conquered,  that  the  few 
wrecks  that  were  left  were  viewed  with  an  eye  to  their  possible 
usefulness.  Venice,  however,  early  in  the  ninth  century  was  noted 
for  its  metal  working,  its  woven  textures  in  silk  and  wool,  in  velvet 
and  in  brocade,  its  beautiful  dyes,  and  its  glass  work  famous  to  this 
day.  As  Mr.  Molmenti  tells  us,  "  the  goldsmiths  especially  reached 
the  dignity  of  a  most  exquisite  art  in  those  little  masterpieces  of 
figures,  imitated  from  the  byzantine,  in  those  ornaments  of  gold 
and  pearl,  of  which  mention  is  made  in  the  will  of  the  Doge  Giu- 
stiniano  Partecipazio  in  829,  and  in  those  gold  chains,  the  chosen 
ornament  of  ladies  as  of  the  Venetians  in  general."  Literature, 
however,  was  all  in  Latin,  and  swamped  under  the  scholasticism 
which  followed  Charlemagne's  times.  Only  in  the  tenth  century 
and  in  northern  France  did  the  native  tongue  make  itself  timidly 
heard  in  the  chansons  and  in  the  earlier  Arthurian  legends  of  Brit- 
tany. In  the  eleventh  century  we  have  the  ripened  development  of 


SAKURAMBO 

this  ballad  literature  in  Provence.  Proven  gal  literature  worthily 
represents  the  refinement  of  the  earlier  times,  and  is  the  nursery 
of  the  future  Italian  and  French  literatures.  In  the  face  of  the 
existence  of  neo-latinism  and  the  Provencal  literature  it  is  an 
exaggeration  to  say  that  Europe  was  a  collection  of  barbarous 
tribes,  and  that  learning  was  only  kept  alive  by  the  Saracens.  To 
these  latter  Europe  did  owe  much,  but  it  can  be  added  that  they 
were  also  a  positive  hindrance  to  the  peaceful  development  of  the 
great  Frank  kingdom,  continually  threatening  one  of  its  flanks. 
It  was  not  until  the  twelfth  century  that  modern  Europe  fairly 
began  to  take  shape,  and  from  that  time  on  a  development  of  art 
and  literature  was  not  only  possible  but  an  actual  fact.  It  had 
to  take  place  largely  under  the  shadow  of  the  church,  for  Europe 
was  still  not  only  a  battleground  but  suffering  from  the  warlike 
habits  incurred  by  the  ages  of  disorder,  and  the  church  was  slow 
in  removing  the  ban  placed  on  beauty  by  early  Christianity.  It  is 
not  to  be  denied  that  Europe  in  some  ways  gained  much  by  the 
very  rough  education  through  which  it  had  passed.  The  very 
complexity,  the  friction  of  nations,  produced  a  width  of  range,  a 
liveliness  of  thought,  a  curiosity  of  understanding,  a  fellowship 
among  its  learned  men,  that  was  most  beneficial,  and  which  when 
the  time  came  for  its  development  has  placed  it  far  ahead  of 
anything  which  the  East  has  been  able  to  develop  on  its  much 
narrower  lines. 

The  physical  geography  of  Japan  is  by  no  means  peculiar.  It 
occupies  a  position  strictly  analogous  to  that  of  Great  Britain. 
The  difference  lies  in  its  neighbours.  The  Chinese  are  a  sluggish, 
peaceful  people,  and  perhaps  the  only  race  in  which  the  profession 
of  the  soldier  is  held  in  contempt.  Their  Tartar  conquerors  were 
no  sailors.  The  Koreans  carried  the  same  qualities  to  a  greater 
exaggeration,  and  also  they  were  split  up  into  small  kingdoms 
singly  as  inefficient  as  any  member  of  the  Heptarchy.  If  there 
was  no  other  evidence,  it  would  be  hard  to  believe  that  any  form  of 
strong  central  government  existed  among  the  warlike  Japanese, 
from  the  fact  that  no  effort  was  made  to  come  in  contact  with  their 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE         113 

neighbours,  which  necessarily  in  the  early  period  of  their  history 
would  have  taken  the  form  of  conquest.  From  lack  of  pressure 
therefore,  internal  and  external,  they  were  left  to  develop  in  their 
island  kingdom  with  only  such  outside  influence  moulding  their 
civilization  as  they  chose  to  adopt.  Communication  with  China, 
their  greatest  neighbour,  was  always  very  spasmodic.  No  great 
trade  ever  sprang  up  between  the  t\vo  peoples,  and  the  interchange 
was  mainly  directed  to  the  adoption  of  Chinese  ideas  on  ethics  and 
politics.  These  were  adopted  and  adapted  wholesale ;  not  so  much 
in  a  continuous  stream  of  influence,  although  through  priests  and 
travellers  a  fairly  constant  communication  was  maintained,  as  at 
set  periods  during  which  there  was  a  fashionable  rage  for  Chinese 
models  in  art  and  literature.  During  the  whole  period  of  their 
national  existence  therefore  the  Japanese  were  left  to  themselves, 
without  external  pressure  of  any  kind,  to  develop  these  models  as 
was  most  pleasing  to  them  and  their  national  genius.  What  pres- 
sure existed  was  of  an  internal  nature,  due  to  disturbances  in  the 
state.  This  will  hamper,  and  in  Japan  did  hamper,  the  continuous 
and  peaceful  development  of  its  art  and  literature,  but  these  were 
never  broken  off  and  crushed  until  there  remained  for  revival 
nothing  but  a  tradition.  Also,  in  the  peculiar  nature  of  the  political 
structure  another  preservative  element  existed.  Namely,  the  Im- 
perial Court.  Separate  from  the  political  struggles  it  was  always 
the  centre  of  the  refinement  of  the  country.  It  underwent  periods 
of  neglect  and  depression,  but  as  such  it  was  sacred  against  direct 
attack,  and  it  is  owing  to  the  existence  of  this  peculiar  institution 
that  much  of  Japanese  ancient  art  and  literature  was  encouraged 
and  preserved. 

The  period  to  which  we  have  now  come  however  had  an 
added  advantage.  It  was  one  of  comparative  peace.  Barons' 
wars  there  were  but  they  rarely  threatened  the  imperial  throne. 
They  were  mainly  struggles  of  ambitious  nobles  getting  a  foothold 
on  the  outskirts  of  the  Empire,  and  to  develop  later  into  that 
ominous  power  which  displaced  the  old  Imperial  line  and  relegated 
it  to  a  high  priesthood  in  the  nation.  The  Yemishi  or  barbarians 

8 


114  SAKURAMBO 

had  been  driven  into  the  northern  part  of  the  main  island,  and  wars 
with  them  had  little  more  importance  to  the  court  at  Kyoto  than  the 
fighting  with  Indians  on  the  western  plains  in  the  fifties  and  sixties 
had  to  the  eastern  United  States.  Time  enough  had  elapsed — over 
three  hundred  years — for  the  native  art  to  develop,  and  it  was  now 
prepared  to  establish  a  school  with  Kose  Kanaoka  as  its  master. 
Later  to  develop  into  the  Tosa  School,  to  this  day  taking  first  place 
in  Japanese  contributions  to  art.  The  same  peaceful  conditions, 
combined  with  a  brilliant  court,  greatly  aided  the  development  of  a 
literature,  which  in  its  description  of  manners,  in  its  short  stories,  in 
the  delicate  fancy  displayed  in  its  poetry,  and  in  its  comparatively 
clean  lines  of  thought,  compares  favourably  with  the  most  brilliant 
part  of  the  Yedo  period.  In  connection  witH  this  period  which  we 
have  been  discussing,  and  that  which  we  are  now  to  discuss,  a  few 
dates  from  English  history  will  not  be  out  of  place.  We  will  pass 
over  such  a  landmark  as  Gariononum  or  Burgh  Castle  in  Norfolk, 
for  this  is  of  Roman  times.  In  Bede's  time,  however,  the  founda- 
tion of  St.  Albans  was  four  hundred  years  old.  Bede  himself 
chronicles  the  first  council  of  the  English  Church  held  at  Hertford 
in  673  A.  D.  and  presided  over  by  Theodore,  seventh  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury.  Ely's  foundation  dates  from  670  A.  D.  In  fact,  in 
the  year  700  A.  D.  the  Saxon  kingdoms  of  Britain  compare  favour- 
ably with  the  island  Empire  in  Japan  as  far  as  all  material  civiliza- 
tion goes.  But  where  the  Japanese  have  in  front  of  them  a  period 
of  peace  in  which  to  develop  the  civilization  obtained  from  their 
continental  neighbours,  the  Saxon  is  to  face  the  Dane  and  the 
Northmen  before  he  is  brought  into  contact  with  the  civilization  of 
southern  Europe  introduced  by  the  Norman  French. 

But  to  return  to  Fujiwara  and  the  course  of  the  Empire.  If 
the  Emperors  were  as  yet  real  monarchs  in  their  kingdom  they  had 
all  the  drawbacks  of  such  real  authority.  On  Tenji's  death  in  671 
A.  D.  there  was  a  disputed  succession  between  nephew  and  uncle, 
which  seems  to  some  degree  to  have  been  started  by  the  suspicions 
of  the  former  as  to  his  uncle's  real  intentions.  After  a  number  of 
pitched  battles  the  nephew's  (Otomo)  army  was  finally  routed 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE        115 

and  dispersed,  and  to  avoid  capture  he  hung  himself.  Temmu,  the 
uncle,  who  reigned  until  686  A.  D.,  gives  us  some  idea  of  the 
increasing  ceremonial  and  luxury.  Fetes  and  dances  are  a  feature 
of  the  court  life.  His  reign  is  also  marked  by  the  discovery  of 
silver  in  Tsushima,  the  island  lying  between  Japan  and  Korea.  It 
is  in  the  reign  of  Mommu  (697-707  A.  D.)  however  that  the 
intimate  connection  between  the  Imperial  House  and  Fujiwara 
began.  This  Emperor  married  a  Fujiwara  and  with  few  excep- 
tions the  wives  of  the  succeeding  Emperors  were  all  taken  from 
this  family.  Fujiwara  are  often  referred  to  as  the  first  Mayors  of 
the  Palace,  but  in  a  sense  they  have  but  little  connection  with  the 
great  ruling  families  that  succeeded  them — Taira,  Minamoto, 
Ho  jo,  Ashikaga,  and  Tokugawa.  In  fact,  the  Emperor  becomes 
so  indistinguishable  in  blood  from  this  family  that  they  can  claim 
as  much  to  sit  upon  the  throne  as  any  Bourbon  or  Hapsburg.  The 
Emperor  is  really  their  representative,  and  up  to  the  twelfth  century 
it  is  a  genuine  rule  of  the  head  of  this  family,  acting  mainly  as 
regent ;  but  sometimes,  at  the  end  of  the  regime,  reappearing  in  the 
person  of  the  Emperor  himself.  This  is  a  very  different  thing 
from  the  essentially  hostile  interests  as  represented  by  the  later 
usurpers,  who  had  no  connection  whatever  with  the  Imperial  House 
except  as  its  vassals.  It  is  to  be  noted  that  in  the  early  period  of 
their  power  the  Fujiwara  really  did  govern.  The  Court  established 
at  Nara  and  later  at  Kyoto  was  the  scene  of  elegance  and  luxury, 
but  these  men  took  their  turn  and  for  four  years  exiled  themselves 
to  the  outer  provinces,  spending  their  time  in  warfare  against  the 
barbarians,  and  in  trying  to  maintain  control  over  the  fast  increas- 
ing but  as  yet  scattered  units  who  were  building  up  semi-indepen- 
dent baronies  which  they  ruled  from  their  strong-holds  far  from 
the  central  power  and  with  small  regard  to  its  wishes.  These 
Goshi,  some  of  them  officials  themselves,  some  of  them  merely 
strong  independent  men,  we  shall  hear  something  of  later.  They 
are  to  be  the  framework  on  which  the  feudal  system  is  to  be  built. 

The   reign   of  the   Empress   Gemmyo    (708-715   A.    D.)    is 
marked  by  the  discovery  of  copper  in  Musashi,  a  province  of  the 


116  SAKURAMBO 

Kwanto  and  in  which  is  situated  much  of  the  Tokyo  plain.  Copper 
was  the  coinage  of  Japan  for  centuries  and  a  native  mintage  dates 
from  this  period.  Until  modern  times  gold  and  silver  while  a 
basis  of  currency  were  but  little  circulated.  The  supply  of  copper 
seems  always  to  have  been  behind  the  demand.  Holy  enthusiasm 
was  in  one  sense  a  cause,  as  the  many  large  statues  of  the  many 
Buddhas  used  up  a  great  part  of  the  metal  mined.  In  Shomei's 
reign  (724-748  A.  D.)  gold  was  discovered  in  Tsushima  and  also 
a  great  Daibutsu  was  erected.  The  statue  is  one  of  Japan's  great 
works  of  art  as  it  still  stands  in  the  Todaiji  at  Nara,  and  it  is  not 
without  interest  to  learn  that  at  a  fete  given  in  its  honour  by  the 
Empress  Koken  ( 749-758  A.  D. )  it  opened  its  eyes,  perhaps  on  the 
change  of  manners  that  was  going  on  around  it.  Things  have 
much  sobered  down.  We  are  reminded  of  a  passage  in  Rabelais, 
where  Ponocrates  for  the  diversion  of  Gargantua  "  thought  fit,  once 
in  a  month,  upon  some  fair  and  clear  day  to  go  out  of  the  city  be- 
times in  the  morning,  either  toward  Gentilly  or  Boulogne,  or  St. 
Clou,  and  there  spend  all  the  day  long  in  making  the  greatest  cheer 
that  could  be  devised,  sporting,  making  merry,  drinking  healths, 
playing,  singing,  dancing,  tumbling,  on  some  fair  meadow."  So 
we  find  the  Emperor  Saga  (810-825  A.  D.)  goes  to  view  the  flow- 
ers, and  makes  the  round  of  the  various  temples  for  a  similar  pur- 
pose and  to  recite  poetry  with  the  priestesses.  In  Nimmyo's  reign 
(834—850  A.  D.)  there  is  a  similar  account  of  his  diversions  to 
which  are  added  hunting  and  fishing,  and  the  Emperor  spends  much 
of  his  time  away  from  the  actual  scene  of  government  which  seems 
to  have  fallen  into  the  hands  of  officials.  All  is  not  smooth,  how- 
ever, for  two  attempts  are  made  on  his  throne,  and  brigands  swarm 
in  the  land.  On  the  whole,  he  is  put  down  by  the  old  chronicle  as 
"  a  good  Emperor,"  and  something  is  made  of  the  discovery  and 
present  to  him  of  a  white  tortoise,  "  a  thing  so  extraordinary  that 
all  the  functionaries  went  to  compliment  the  Emperor  who  gave  a 
new  name  period  (nengo)  to  his  reign  in  recognition  of  the  happy 
augury." 

With  all  this  life  of  pleasure  however  we  are  approaching  a  time 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE         117 

critical  to  the  history  of  these  emperors.  Montoku  (851-858  A.  D.) 
had  much  the  taste  of  his  predecessors.  His  weak  health  would  not 
allow  the  more  boisterous  exercise  of  the  chase.  He  confined  him- 
self much  to  visits  among  his  subjects,  and  to  excursions  to  see  the 
bloom  of  the  cherry-trees  and  other  flowers.  With  such  excursions 
were  combined  poetry  making.  There  is  an  amusing  episode 
attached  to  a  charlatan  priest  who  claimed  that  by  divine  interposi- 
tion he  could  get  along  without  food.  For  a  time  he  had  much 
credit  as  a  wonder  and  was  lodged  in  the  Imperial  Palace,  but  by 
a  very  natural  process  better  imagined  than  described  he  was  soon 
detected  and  expelled  in  disgrace  from  the  palace.  It  is  to  be 
feared  that  the  people  themselves  by  no  means  led  the  idyllic  lives 
of  their  monarchs.  We  hear  much  of  famines  and  pestilence,  both 
of  which  seemed  to  be  almost  periodical  in  their  operation.  Fuji 
also  was  at  this  time  an  active  volcano,  and  in  Seiwa's  reign  (859- 
876  A.  D.)  there  was  a  very  violent  eruption,  rocks  being  hurled 
into  the  sea,  and  many  houses  wrecked  and  people  killed.  The 
youth  of  this  monarch  is  to  be  noted.  He  was  nine  years  old  when 
he  ascended  the  throne,  and  his  successor  but  one  was  but  eight 
years  old.  This  latter,  Yozei  (877-884  A.  D.)  developed  into  a 
very  bad  lot.  Ordinary  libertinage  degenerated  into  the  worst 
cruelty,  and  when  he  summoned  men  and  women  to  the  palace  to 
furnish  a  mark  for  his  arrows  the  Regent  interfered.  Fujiwara 
Mototsune  inveigled  him  out  of  his  palace  and  quietly  carried  him 
off.  On  the  unexpected  death  of  his  successor,  Mototsune  set  up 
another  child  Uda  (888-897  A-  D.)  The  crafty  old  man  soon 
presented  himself  with  the  wish  to  be  relieved  of  his  charges  of 
office,  and  the  inexperienced  young  monarch  was  naturally  only 
too  anxious  to  have  him  remain  and  carry  on  the  government  as  in 
the  past.  This  reducing  the  Emperor  to  a  mere  figurehead  how- 
ever makes  itself  felt.  Rebellion,  not  unfrequent  before,  becomes 
almost  chronic,  and  in  Shugaku's  reign  (931-946  A.  D. )  Taira 
no  Masa  in  the  Kwanto  and  Fujiwara  no  Sumitomo  in  lyo  were 
only  defeated  and  killed  after  serious  fighting.  These  two  names 
at  this  period  are  suggestive.  The  one  as  that  of  the  coming  rulers 


118  SAKURAMBO 

of  the  empire  and  the  other  as  showing  that  the  ruling  house  was 
losing  its  solidarity.  The  throne  itself  for  a  long  time  seems  to 
have  been  anything  but  a  desirable  goal.  When  not  forced  out, 
the  emperors  abdicated  from  choice.  Kwasan  (985-986  A.  D.) 
soon  had  enough  of  it.  He  was  an  amorous  young  man  with 
three  wives,  to  one  of  which  he  was  passionately  attached.  She 
died,  however,  and  one  evening  the  Emperor  disappeared  from  the 
palace.  All  night  they  searched  for  him  and  the  palace  was  in  a 
turmoil.  The  next  day  he  was  found  with  shaven  head  in  a 
neighbouring  monastery.  He  had  turned  monk.  This  was  by  no 
means  an  unusual  step.  It  was  often  taken  by  the  emperors  to 
enable  themselves  to  play  a  real  part  in  the  political  struggles  of  the 
time.  This  of  course  brought  the  religious  orders  into  politics,  and 
they  soon  became  anything  but  a  means  of  withdrawal  from  the 
world  to  lead  a  life  of  devotion.  We  have  said  little  of  the  Church, 
not  because  they  did  not  deserve  mention  but  because  they  were 
bound  soon  to  compel  attention  in  the  annals  by  some  very  stren- 
uous deeds.  Since  Denkiotaishi  on  Hiesan  and  Kobodaishi  on 
Koyasan  had  founded,  in  the  ninth  century,  their  great  monasteries, 
these  priests  had  developed  into  a  great  military  power.  As  yet 
we  hear  little  of  them,  but  in  Go-Shuyaku's  reign  (1037-1045 
A.  D. )  the  monks  of  Hieisan  raised  riot  in  front  of  the  Mikado's 
palace,  a  most  heinous  offence.  From  that  time  on  they  usually 
have  a  hand,  on  one  side  or  the  other,  in  all  the  disturbances  so 
frequent  near  Kyoto  as  the  central  power  weakened.  There  was 
little  control  over  the  great  barons  ruling  the  outer  provinces,  who 
fought  each  other  for  supremacy  with  cheerful  indifference  to  the 
interests  of  the  Empire.  Fujiwara  had  only  been  too  glad  to 
depute  its  duties  to  outsiders,  who  building  up  feudal  strongholds 
by  conquest  of  their  neighbours  had  become,  in  a  number  of  cases, 
•powerful  chieftains.  For  twelve  years  Yoriyoshi  and  Sadetao 
fought  for  the  supremacy  of  the  great  northern  province  of  Dewa, 
with  small  thought  of  the  central  power,  and  Minamoto  Yoriyoshi 
emerged  triumphant.  Meanwhile  the  Emperor  was  diverting  him- 
self with  flowers  and  poetry  and  jewrels. 


THE    CENTRE    OF    SHIMOTSUKE  119 

The  lack  of  proper  timber  in  the  house  of  Fujiwara  finds 
application  in  Go-Sanjo's  reign  (1069-1072  A.  D.).  This  Em- 
peror renewed  the  practice  of  hearing  petitions  himself,  and  his 
successor,  Shirakawa  (1073-1086  A.  D.),  although  he  abdicated, 
kept  the  power  in  his  own  hands.  He  replaces  the  Fujiwara  as 
actual  head  of  the  Government.  And  so  with  his  successors. 
These  make  way  in  order  to  rule  through  their  sons  and  grandsons. 
Through  custom  the  Emperor  has  become  a  figurehead,  and  custom 
is  all  powerful  in  Japan.  The  times  were  marked  by  great  dis- 
order. Barons'  wars  in  the  north  and  west,  and  fighting  between 
the  great  monasteries  around  Kyoto.  In  fact,  without  Taira  and 
Minamoto  and  the  monks  of  Hieisan,  things  would  have  been  dull. 
In  1 08 1  A.  D.  the  monks  of  Hieisan  burnt  Miidera  to  the  ground, 
and  they  repeated  this  operation  again  in  1140  A.  D.  Miidera  is 
the  well-known  temple  on  the  hill  above  Otsu  on  Lake  Biwa,  and 
this  "  peaceful "  retreat  for  religious  men  fairly  represents  the 
church  militant  of  the  times.  We  can  take  a  last  glimpse  of  the 
other  side  of  the  picture  under  the  reign  of  Shutoku  (1124-1141 
A.  D.).  He  and  the  former  Emperor  went  to  view  the  spring 
flowers,  "  many  ladies  of  the  court  accompanying  in  carriages ; 
their  cortege  was  very  brilliant.  With  gentlemen  on  horseback, 
bands  of  musicians,  and  many  women  destined  to  sing  before  the 
two  Emperors/' 

At  this  point  when  the  existing  regime  of  Court  and  Emperor 
are  about  to  retire  to  make  room  for  a  very,  different  set  of  actors 
on  the  political  stage,  let  us  look  backward  and  forward  to  take 
some  account  of  the  men  and  means  which  are  to  supplant  them. 
The  old  patriarchal  household  consisted,  as  in  most-other  countries, 
of  head,  blood  relations,  and  slaves.  These  last  were  regarded  as 
goods  and  chattels.  They  were  not  as  yet  attached  to  the  land 
and  were  a  matter  of  sale  and  barter.  To  some  extent  this  class 
was  probably  made  up  of  such  of  the  aborigines  (Ainu)  who  chose 
to  remain  on  the  land  with  their  conquerors,  and  of  Chinese  and 
Korean  captives.  Slaves  were  also  recruited  from  men  who 
through  crime  or  debt  or  offences  against  the  rulers  were  reduced 


120  SAKURAMBO 

to  that  condition.  In  that  rough  time  the  size  of  a  man's  household 
had  much  to  do  with  his  safety  and  importance,  and  the  man  who 
collected  around  his  dwelling  a  numerous  band  made  up  of  sons 
and  son's  sons,  brothers  and  their  sons,  together  with  the  numerous 
slaves  needed  for  the  menial  work  of  some  large  landed  property, 
soon  became  a  power  to  be  reckoned  with.  These  landed  proprie- 
tors, known  as  kumitsuko,  differ  in  the  amount  of  their  holdings, 
the  tendency  being  for  the  larger  to  swallow  the  smaller.  They 
owed  no"  feudal  service  to  the  Emperor,  although  subject  to  his 
taxation.  Their  property  belonged  to  them  of  right  and  descended 
to  their  heirs  without  any  additional  ceremony  of  investiture. 
Their  own  original  investiture  seems  to  have  been,  in  many  cases, 
of  the  informal  nature  of  the  squatter,  although  a  more  formal 
title  was  later  obtained.  In  fact,  they  seem  hardly  to  be  distin- 
guished from  the  men  known  later  as  goshi,  and  which  in  the  times 
we  have  now  reached — Taira  and  Minamoto — begin  to  play  the 
important  part.  In  many  cases  these  goshi  seem  to  have  been  offi- 
cials who  taking  up  large  grants  of  land — free  from  taxation — 
threw  them  open  to  settlement  on  terms  naturally  much  more 
advantageous  than  the  taxed  land  of  the  imperial  government. 
The  peasants  eagerly  flocked  to  such  cheap  land ;  there  was  no 
power  to  check  these  powerful,  almost  independent  lords,  and  the 
imperial  revenues  dwindled  to  almost  nothing.  Meanwhile  the 
barons  with  their  adherents  waxed  fat  and  became  a  power  in  the 
land.  In  other  cases  they  seem  simply  to  have  been  men,  who,  from 
natural  abilities  taking  a  leading  position  in  their  village  com- 
munity, acquired  wealth,  influence,  and  adherents,  by  which  they 
were  enabled  to  dispense  protection  to  those  who  were  weaker  and 
who  sacrificed  independence  to  security.  It  is  a  distinct  instance 
of  the  almost  natural  position  that  a  feudal  system  plays  in  the 
political  development  of  man,  very  much  at  variance  with  the 
theories  of  our  present  degeneration  from  a  condition  of  ideal  love 
and  justice  as  found  in  primitive  man.  A  love  and  justice,  it  can 
be  added,  which,  like  that  found  among  the  Australian  aborigines 
of  to-day,  was  largely  dispensed  with  a  club.  Now  the  military 


THE    CENTRE    OF    SHIMOTSUKE 

force  of  these  early  days,  and  almost  up  to  Tokugawa  times,  was 
drawn  from  the  general  population.  A  chief  led  to  war  the  strong- 
est and  best  of  his  retainers.  His  sons  and  nephews  rode  by  his 
side  and  the  sturdiest  of  his  slaves  tramped  behind  with  clubs  and 
spears  and  short  swrords.  There  seems  to  have  been  but  little  modi- 
fication of  this  system  except  that  in  time  the  peasantry  became 
attached  to  the  soil  and  were  transferred  with  it,  and  slavery  in 
name  at  all  events  disappeared  from  the  land. 

With  the  accession  of  Go-Shirakawa  (1156-58  A.  D.)  civil 
war  broke  out,  in  which  the  two  candidates  were  variously  sup- 
ported by  the  twro  great  baronies,  Taira  and  Minamoto.  The 
Emperor  de  facto  found  at  his  side  Taira  Kiyomori  and  Minamoto 
Yoshitomo  who  sided  against  his  clan.  Whilst  other  nobles  hast- 
ened to  the  camp  of  his  opponent,  these  two  great  captains  provided 
for  the  defence  of  the  palace.  The  general  breakdown  in  this 
strife  is  a  source  of  trouble  to  the  old  chronicler.  "  Father  fought 
against  his  son,  relation  against  relation,  and  lords  against  their 
subjects/'  Ability  was  on  the  side  of  the  Emperor  and  his  oppon- 
ents were  crushed.  Two  such  men  as  Yoshitomo  and  Kiyomori, 
both  ambitious  for  po\ver,  could  not  long  get  on  together.  Yoshi- 
tomo soon  conspired  to  get  rid  of  Kiyomori,  but  was  defeated  and 
subsequently  assassinated  by  his  own  relatives.  His  sons  by  his  wife 
shared  the  same  fate,  except  Yoritomo,  then  fourteen  years  of  age, 
who  was  banished  by  Kiyomori  to  the  neighbourhood  of  the 
Kwanto — a  most  shortsighted  procedure  on  the  part  of  this  ordi- 
narily astute  man.  The  beautiful  concubine  of  Yoshitomo,  Tokiwa, 
saved  the  lives  of  her  family  and  her  three  children  by  submitting 
herself  to  Kiyomori  and  becoming  his  concubine.  The  other 
scourge  of  the  Taira  family,  Yoshitsune,  was  one  of  these  children. 
From  1166-1181  A.  D.  Kiyomori  was  supreme  in  the  Govern- 
ment, which  was  filled  with  his  relatives  and  supporters. 
Towards  the  end,  however,  the  defeated  Minamoto  again  raised 
their  heads.  This  first  revolt  was  easily  crushed,  and  Kiyomori, 
first  burning  Miidera  as  a  warning  to  the  monks  to  keep  out  of 
politics,  sent  an  army  against  Yoritomo,  who,  aroused  by  his  rela- 


SAKURAMBO 

lives  in  the  South,  had  raised  an  army  in  the  Kwanto.  In  a 
battle  near  Lake  Hakone,  Yoritomo's  handful  of  men  were  soon 
dispersed,  and  he  himself  only  escaped  through  the  faithlessness  of- 
one  of  his  pursuers.  He  had  taken  refuge  in  a  hollow  tree  and  was 
found  there  by  this  man,  who  however  reported  that  there  was  no 
sign  of  him,  and  that  the  opening  in  the  tree  was  crossed  by  spiders' 
webs,  showing  no  use  of  it  as  a  place  of  concealment.  Small  events 
sometimes  turn  the  course  of  Empire,  and  Yoritomo  escaped  to 
Awa  and  set  himself  to  work  to  rouse  the  whole  Kwanto.  Ban- 
ished at  the  age  of  fourteen,  he  was  now  thirty  years  old.  He  soon 
centred  a  powerful  force  at  Kamakura,  and  the  army  sent  by 
Kiyomori  to  break  up  this  camp  did  not  dare  to  attack  him. 
Yoshitsune  joined  him  with  all  the  Minamoto  forces  he  could  raise 
in  the  South,  and  his  cousin  Yoshinaka  threatened  Kyoto  close  at 
hand.  The  priestly  bands  took  sides  with  Yoritomo.  Just  at  this 
critical  period  Kiyomori  died,  and  the  Taira,  pressed  on  every  side, 
abandoned  Kyoto  with  the  infant  Emperor.  Yoshinaka  marched 
into  the  city,  set  up  a  new  Emperor  and  incidentally  himself  also. 
This  by  no  means  was  on  Yoritomo's  programme,  and  Yoshitsune's 
effective  force  soon  suppressed  him.  He  was  killed  by  an  arrow 
in  one  of  the  battles  around  Kyoto,  and  this  friendly  discussion 
among  relatives  ended  with  his  death. 

Yoshitsune's  task  was  by  no  means  ended  with  breaking  up 
Yoshinaka' s  power  in  Kyoto.  The  Taira — or  Heike  as  they  are 
better  known  in  Japanese  history — had  retreated  with  the  young 
Emperor  into  the  western  provinces  along  the  Inland  Sea. 
Yoshitsune  promptly  followed  them  up  and  scattered  them.  The 
campaign  was  not  pressed,  however,  and  he  soon  returned  to 
recruit  his  forces  at  Kyoto,  and  to  strengthen  his  brother's  govern- 
ment at  that  vital  point.  This  done,  the  third  and  last  campaign 
against  the  Taira  was  entered  upon.  Hemmed  in  by  the  forces  of 
Kyushu  friendly  to  Yoritomo,  and  by  Yoshitsune  advancing  west- 
ward with  his  flotilla,  they  made  their  last  stand  near  Shimonoseki. 
No  compromise  was  thought  of  on  either  side.  Taira  were  greatly 
outnumbered  and  opposed  to  the  greatest  general  Japan  had  as  yet 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE         123 

produced.  In  their  desperation,  however,  the  Battle  even  showed 
signs  in  their  favour.  Yoshitsune  is  said  to  have  invoked  the 
divine  assistance  of  Hachiman,  the  God  of  War.  More  likely  he 
invoked  the  divine  assistance  of  his  heavier  battalions  and  ordered 
up  his  reserves.  The  enemy  were  totally  broken.  The  great 
majority  perished  in  the  sea.  Many  stories  are  told  of  the  end  of 
the  little  Emperor,  Antok.  A  wanderer  for  two  years,  he  was 
now  but  eight  years  of  age.  His  nurse  led  him  to  the  side  of  the 
ship,  and  bidding  him  make  his  prayers  to  the  Gods  beguiled  him 
with  the  pretty  tale  of  the  beautiful  palace  beneath  the  sea  which 
they  were  about  to  visit,  and  where  his  divine  ancestors  were  wait- 
ing to  receive  him.  Clasping  his  little  hands,  the  Emperor  gravely 
went  through  the  ceremonial  form  of  prayer,  with  all  the  gravity  of 
a  child  that  seemed  to  pierce  the  real  design  of  his  nurse  and  which 
his  dignity  taught  him  to  accept.  Clasping  him  in  her  arms  she 
then  jumped  overboard  and  so  ended  this  strife  of  the  .Imperial 
houses.  But  few  of  the  Taira  clan  escaped.  Those  who  did  so 
concealed  themselves  under  other  names.  They  disappeared  from 
Japanese  annals  until  Ota  Nobunaga,  one  of  Japan's  great  trium- 
virate, resuscitated  the  glory  of  his  house  and  again  ruled  the 
country.  The  fate  of  the  victor  was  no  better.  Made  jealous  by 
his  brother's  success,  Yoritomo  forbade  his  approach  to  Kamakura. 
Of  the  loyalty  of  Yoshitsune  at  this  period  there  seems  to  have 
been  not  the  slightest  doubt.  There  is  a  good  deal  of  the  court  of 
the  second  Mahmout  about  old  Japan.  Yoshitsune's  safety  lay  in 
his  own  right  arm  and  we  soon  find  the  two  brothers  in  arms 
against  each  other.  Fortune  favoured  Yoritomo  and  Yoshitsune's 
fleet  was  scattered  by  a  storm.  His  army  broken  up,  he  fled  to  the 
north  and  took  refuge  with  a  retainer  whom  he  had  reason  to 
trust.  Urged  by  Yoritomo,  however,  this  man  surprised  and  sur- 
rounded him.  Yoshitsune  having  killed  his  wife  and  children, 
himself  committed  hara-kiri.  Y^oritomo  promptly  turned  on  the 
traitorous  retainer,  and  despatching  a  force  against  him  punished 
him  for  his  misdeed  by  destroying  him  and  his  family  and  confis- 
cating the  fief  for  one  of  his  retainers. 


SAKURAMBO 

Yoritomo  was  not  merely  a  great  general.  He  was  playing 
for  higher  stakes  than  simply  that  of  being  the  most  influential  of  a 
number  of  vassals.  The  name  was  little — or  rather  was  impos- 
sible— but  the  power  was  much,  and  he  sought  to  govern  Japan,  not 
through  the  medium  of  the  Court,  but  directly  as  by  right  of  his 
position.  For  this  purpose  the  Court  must  be  eliminated.  This 
could  not  be  done  directly,  for  the  Emperor  was  a  sacred  figure  in 
the  eyes  of  the  nation.  Yoritomo  and  his  successors  never  tried  to 
eliminate  the  Emperor.  Their  object  was  to  make  him  the  merest 
figurehead,  and  this  they  succeeded  in  doing.  Once  permanently 
retired  from  the  active  government  custom  or  precedent  in  Japan 
would  quickly  fasten  the  role  on  the  Imperial  puppet.  With  the 
exception  of  one  instance  to  be  mentioned  later  he  now  becomes  a 
name,  even  as  a  fountainhead  of  honours.  All  honours  are  centred 
in  the  Emperor.  They  are  derived  from  him,  always  are  derived 
from  him;  but  in  their  issuance  he  is  merely  the  mouthpiece  of  the 
Shogun's  government.  In  the  early  days  there  are  signs  of  rebel- 
lion against  this  role,  but  in  the  rough  days  of  Ho  jo  and  Ashikaga 
such  recalcitrancy  is  met  by  removal  and  substitution  of  a  more 
pliant  instrument.  Most  of  them  are  very  young,  and  as  soon  as 
they  reach  a  reasoning  age  are  removed  (abdicate)  and  are 
replaced  by  another  child.  The  sacred  character,  be  it  added,  is 
more  and  more  enhanced.  The  Emperor  soon  disappears  from  the 
scene  altogether,  and  it  is  said  that  in  Tokugawa  times  he  was 
rarely  seen  by  anyone  except  his  women,  communication  with  the 
Court  taking  place  with  the  intervention  of  a  screen  to  conceal  the 
majesty  of  the  august  Imperial  countenance.  The  history  of  Japan 
is  no  longer  the  history  of  its  emperors  but  of  the  ambitious  men 
who  in  turn  succeeded  in  grasping  its  rule.  A  singularly  uninter- 
esting history,  for  Japan  had  no  international  politics,  had  no  devel- 
opment of  a  great  political  or  economic  system.  Up  to  the  time  of 
Ota  Nobunaga  they  are  admirably  instanced  by  the  history  of  the 
barons'  wars  of  Stephen's  time  or  the  War  of  the  Roses.  These 
have  their  interest  in  their  influence  on  England's  position  toward 
continental  Europe.  No  such  interest  attaches  to  the  intestine 
feuds  of  Japan. 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE         125 

The  divinity  therefore  which  hedged  about  a  king  and  so 
much  enhanced  his  power  in  Europe  had  just  the  opposite  effect  in 
Japan.     It  contributed  to  his  personal  safety,  it  took  away  his  per- 
sonal importance  and  stripped  from  him  all  real  power  in  the  State. 
Having  reduced  the  Emperor  to  the  position  of  an  hereditary  Pope 
without  any  of  the  Pope's  power,  Yoritomo  proceeded  to  consoli- 
date  his   position.      By   his    "  advice/'    military   governors   were 
established  in  all  provinces,  side  by  side  with  the  civil  governor 
appointed    from    the    Court.      These    aids    "  to    maintain    the 
peace  "  soon  deprived  the  civil  governor  of  any  shadow  of  power. 
Their  appointment  lay  in  the  Shogunate  and  was  used  simply  as  a 
basis  of  the  feudal  system  they  built  up,  and  the  means  through 
which  the  various  fiefs  with  their  obligations  of  military  service 
were  distributed.     This  is  so  exactly  similar  to  that  of  Europe  that 
details  are  unnecessary.     A  great  fiefholder  subdivided  his  fief,  and 
so  down  to  the  retainer  who  held  property  and  attended  the  call  of 
his  lord  with  his  half  a  dozen  men  at  arms  called  from  their  farms 
to  fight  or  fetch  and  carry.     The  roughness  of  the  times  is  well 
illustrated  by  the  story  of  Sukenari  and  Tokimune,  two  brothers 
\vhose  father  had  been  killed  in  one  of  the  petty  barons'  wars  which 
were  an  incident  of  the  time.     Their  father's  slayer  was  in  Yori- 
tomo's  train  and  they  forced  their  way  even  into  the  prince's  hunt- 
ing lodge.     They  succeeded  in  their  object  and  killed  their  enemy. 
It  seems  to  have  been  almost  a  general  attack.     The  whole  palace 
was  aroused,  and  the  two  desperate  men  almost  reached  Yoritomo's 
presence.     Many  attendants  were  killed  in  this  nocturnal  fray,  and 
Yoritomo  himself,  roused  by  the  alarm,  was  only  restrained  with 
difficulty  from  taking  part  in  the  fray.     One  brother  was  killed  and 
the  other  captured.     They  have  gone  down  to  history  as  the  Soga 
brothers,   and  the  monument  raised  in  commemoration  of  their 
pious  act  on  the  Hakone  road  near  Ashinoyu  is  still  an  object  of 
veneration.     A   far  more  significant   mark   of  the  times   is  the 
disappearance  of  woman.     In  the  days  of  the  Kyoto  court  she  has 
been  a  prominent  feature  in  literature.     Now  she  sinks  back  into  a 
breeding  machine  and  disappears  entirely   from  public  life.     In 


126  SAKURAMBO 

fact,  the  arena  of  politics  and  society  had  no  place  for  a  woman. 
Yoritomo's  regime  lasted  but  a  short  time.  He  was  killed  by 
the  fall  from  a  horse,  and  if  it  was  the  noble  beast  nine  feet  high, 
said  to  have  been  presented  to  him,  we  can  understand  the  serious- 
ness of  such  an  accident.  Both  his  sons  were  incapable.  The 
first  Yoshiye  was  a  debauched  young  man  given  to  pleasure.  He 
abdicated  in  favour  of  his  brother  and  was  subsequently  despatched 
by  assassins.  Sanetomo,  as  soon  as  he  reached  the  age  of  govern- 
ment, was  assassinated  by  Yoshiye's  son.  The  real  power,  how- 
ever, had  lain  since  Yoritomo's  death  in  the  hands  of  Ho  jo  Toki- 
masa,  their  uncle.  No  change  was  made  in  the  regency  but  a  suc- 
cession of  Shoguns,  partly  Fujiwara  and  partly  younger  members 
of  the  Imperial  house,  succeeded  under  the  power  of  this  able  but 
unscrupulous  family. 

That  the  Ho  jo  ruled  with  the  strong  hand  is  true.  That  they 
were  the  first  to  treat  the  Emperor  and  his  Court  with  the  greatest 
disregard  of  any  of  the  imperial  wishes  is  also  true.  But  in  this 
they  merely  led  the  way,  and  there  is  nothing  to  distinguish  their 
conduct  toward  the  Imperial  house  from  that  of  their  immediate 
successors  in  Ashikaga  times.  The  same  problem  hardly  figured 
for  the  Tokugawa.  In  Japan,  precedent  soon  forms  a  rule,  and 
once  accepted,  the  new  position  of  the  Imperial  house  passed  into  a 
formula  of  government.  In  Ho  jo  times  this  however  was  not  the 
case,  and  efforts  of  the  Court  to  restore  the  power  of  the  Emperor 
were  met  by  summary  removal  and  banishment.  It  was  only 
toward  the  end  of  the  period,  when,  with  that  peculiar  substitution 
or  acting  through  an  agent  carried  to  excess  in  Japanese  life,  we 
not  only  have  a  Regent  of  the  Shogun  but  a  Regent  of  the  Regent, 
that  the  disorderly  feudal  barons  began  again  to  disturb  the  peace 
of  the  home  provinces.  It  was  Ho  jo  Tokimune,  however,  who 
met  the  great  Tartar  attempt  at  invasion  in  1280  A.  D.  The  Tar- 
tars had  been  already  heard  from  since  1269  A.  D.,  but  their 
threats  were  disregarded  and  the  latest  embassy  was  put  to  death 
to  the  last  man.  This  was  no  treatment  for  the  representatives  of 
the  great  Kublai  Khan,  but  he  certainly  made  a  grievous  tactical 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE        127 

error  when  he  sent  but  a  hundred  thousand  men  against  the  island 
empire.  If  the  necessity  had  arisen  Tokimune  could  have  matched 
easily  this  army  man  for  man.  As  it  was  it  was  not  necessary. 
Storm  scattered  the  enemy's  fleet  and  only  thirty  thousand  of  them 
ever  reached  Japanese  soil.  Both  Japanese  and  Chinese  accounts 
well  agree  as  to  this  point.  They  were  overwhelmed  by  the  Jap- 
anse  and  were  put  to  death  with  the  exception  of  three  who  were 
sent  home  to  tell  the  tale.  The  Italian  traveller,  Marco  Polo,  gives 
us  the  absurd  tale  current  in  China  as  to  this  invasion.  According 
to  this  account  these  men  were  landed  without  arms  on  one  of  the 
outlying  islands.  Meanwhile  the  storm  raged,  and  the  Chinese 
general  to  save  his  fleet  weighed  anchor  and  left  these  unfortunates 
to  get  along  as  best  they  could.  Concealing  themselves  on  the 
approach  of  the  Japanese  flotilla,  they  waited  until  the  enemy  had 
disembarked  and  were  searching  the  island  for  foes.  Then  these 
Tartars  seized  the  unguarded  ships  and  sailed  away,  turning  the 
tables  on  their  foes.  The  Japanese  king,  deceived  by  the  banners, 
admits  them  to  his  capital,  which  they  seize  and  drive  out  all  the 
natives  except  the  women.  After  undergoing  a  siege  of  half  a 
year,  without  hope  of  succour,  they  compound  with  the  foe  and  save 
their  lives. 

It  is  the  strange  and  unknown  even  in  these  modern  days  that 
gives  rise  to  wildest  conjectures  on  which  the  slightest  tinge  of  fact 
is  magnified  into  detailed  accounts  of  supposed  eye  witnesses. 
Every  unknowrn  country  has  figured  in  turn  as  an  Eldorado,  and 
Japan  is  no  exception.  Although  the  Khan's  letter  was  couched 
in  terms  of  complaint  against  Japan's  inhospitable  behaviour  to  the 
rest  of  the  world,  the  real  reason  for  his  invasion  may  perhaps  be 
found  in  the  rumours  as  to  the  great  wealth  of  the  country,  rumours 
which  we  know  now  were  more  than  absurd.  Marco  Polo  gives 
much  information  current  at  the  time  in  China  concerning  the  Jap- 
anese. Some  of  it  very  uncomplimentary,  and  some  of  it  very 
marvellous.  One  phrase  is  well  worth  giving.  In  fact,  his  whole 
account  as  given  in  Klaproth's  comprehensive  note  is  most  inter- 
esting, but  too  long  for  quotation.  "  The  people  are  fair,  fine 


128  SAKURAMBO 

looking  and  of  gentle  manners.  .  .  .  They  have  gold  in  great- 
est abundance,  hence  it  is  here  found  out  of  measure  and  the  king 
does  not  allow  it  to  be  carried  away;  but  few  merchants  come 
here  and  rarely  the  ships  of  other  nations.  .  .  .  They  say, 
who  have  knowledge  of  this  country,  that  there  is  a  great  palace 
entirely  covered  with  plates  of  gold,  as  we  cover  houses  and  churches 
with  lead,  and  all  the  ceilings  of  the  reception  rooms  and  of  many 
chambers  are  of  little  tablets  of  pure  gold  very  thick  and  even  the 
windows  are  ornamented  with  gold.  This  palace  is  so  costly  that 
no  one  could  even  estimate  its  value.  There  are  also  in  the  island 
numberless  pearls,  which  are  red,  round,  and  very  large,  and  worth 
as  much  as  the  white,  and  more.  And  in  this  island  some  are 
buried  when  dead,  and  some  are  burnt.  But  of  those  that  are 
buried,  one  of  these  pearls  is  placed  in  the  mouth,  this  being  their 
custom.  There  are  also  many  precious  stones."  The  mineral 
wealth  of  Japan  to-day  cuts  anything  but  a  figure  in  the  world's 
assets  and  its  present  deficiencies  are  by  no  means  due  to  exhaustion 
through  previous  working. 

A  house  divided  against  itself  will  fall,  and  this  seems  to  have 
had  much  to  do  with  the  decline  of  the  Ho  jo.  In  any  case  the 
times  were  beyond  them.  An  exceptional  man  was  needed  to  bring 
this  disorderly  period  under  the  rule  of  his  strong  hand,  and  per- 
haps it  was  necessary  that  disintegration  should  advance  to  such 
an  extent  as  to  make  its  evils  felt  before  such  man  would  find  the 
materials  ripe  to  his  hand.  Meanwhile  Ho  jo  influence  had  so 
fallen  that  when  for  the  first  time  we  find  an  emperor  of  ripe  age  on 
the  throne — Go-Daigo  who  became  the  Emperor  in  1319  A.  D.  at 
the  age  of  thirty-one  years — we  also  find  the  court  at  Kyoto  begin- 
ning to  raise  its  head.  Once  more  the  Emperor  is  heard  of  in 
public  life.  He  receives  petitions,  relieves  the  distressed  with  his 
bounty,  which  unexpected  action  is  the  more  enhanced  by  the 
severe  famines  which  seemed  to  have  become  almost  periodical. 
Go-Daigo  sought  and  obtained  support  from  the  priests.  His  first 
effort  in  1331  A.  D.  was  a  failure.  He  was  badly  beaten,  cap- 
tured, and  exiled  to  the  island  of  Oki.  In  his  place,  Hojo  Takatori 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE         129 

substituted  the  Emperor  Go-Murakami.  Go-Daigo  escaped  and 
the  monks  rose  in  his  favour.  Although  these  militant  friars  were 
beaten  they  gave  the  signal  for  a  general  uprising.  The  forces  of 
Nitta  Yoshisada  and  Ashikaga  Takauji,  acting  for  the  Emperor, 
drove  the  Kamakura  forces  out  of  Kyoto.  In  1333  A.  D.  Kama- 
kura  itself  fell  before  the  assault  of  Nitta's  army.  A  great  and 
populous  city,  the  once  capital  of  the  Empire,  is  now  a  little  fishing 
village  set  among  picturesque  hills  by  the  side  of  the  sea,  and 
adorned  with  handsome  temples  and  the  most  beautiful  statue  of 
Japanese  art.  All  sadly  out  of  proportion  with  its  present  condi- 
tion. If  Go-Daigo  had  been  a  very  great  man  or  even  a  mod- 
erately great  Emperor,  the  Imperial  house  might  now  have  recov- 
ered its  pristine  glory.  He  was  neither,  and  failed  to  rise  to  the 
occasion.  Bound  by  custom  he  could  only  think  of  perpetuating 
the  existing  system  by  the  distribution  of  fiefs  among  his  already 
too  powerful  supporters.  In  the  quarrel  which  ensued  between 
Nitta  and  Ashikaga  he,  perhaps  justly  but  inadvisedly,  sided  with 
the  former.  Nitta  was  defeated ;  and  failing  any  longer  to  protect 
his  Emperor,  cut  off  his  own  head!  The  Emperor  was  captured. 
He  escaped,  however,  and  took  refuge  in  Yoshino,  now  famous 
for  its  cherry-blossoms.  Ashikaga  Takauji  promptly  declared  the 
throne  vacant,  set  up  a  new  emperor  and  for  some  years  the  two 
courts  existed  in  close  proximity  to  each  other.  One  change  was 
made  by  the  transfer  of  the  Shogunate  to  the  Ashikaga.  The  real 
centre  of  the  government  was  again  at  Kyoto,  and  the  North  was 
again  abandoned  to  its  own  devices  at  a  time  when  the  unruly 
barons  of  that  part  of  the  country  most  needed  a  stro.ng  hand  to 
keep  them  in  order. 

The  Ashikaga  Shogunate  still  less  than  any  of  its  predecessors 
was  likely  to  produce  the  man  fit  for  the  times.  Its  history  is 
extremely  uninteresting  even  if  instructive.  The  country  was 
broken  up  into  a  number  of  warring  barons.  The  origin  of  many 
of  these  daimyo  was  in  the  goshi  class.  As  has  been  said  these 
men,  often  farmers  and  adventurers,  made  themselves  a  centre  of 
influence,  and  by  the  process  of  swallowing  their  neighbours  became 

9 


130  SAKURAMBO 

the  masters  of  the  surrounding  territories.  They  had  no  connec- 
tion with  the  court,  whose  adherents  without  influence  or  resources 
were  in  some  cases  almost  destitute.  The  period  of  war  of  course 
had  a  great  influence  on  the  arts  of  the  country.  That  they  were 
kept  alive  is  simply  due  to  the  inherent  artistic  taste  of  the  Japanese 
people.  These  rough  soldiers  would  turn  from  hacking  off  each 
others'  heads  to  the  contemplation  of  a  scroll  by  one  of  the  later 
Tosa  school  ( strongly  influenced  in  recent  times  by  Chinese  ideals ) , 
to  the  intricacies  of  the  tea  ceremony,  to  the  high  moral  and  martial 
principles  of  some  of  the  No  or  dramatic  representations  which 
were  the  peculiar  delight  of  this  military  class.  This  class  had  not 
taken  that  exclusiveness  that  they  did  later  on.  A  strong  man 
could  yet  make  his  way  into  it,  and  brains  or  skill  in  the  use  of  his 
weapons  was  as  yet  a  highway  to  fortune.  They  have  strongly 
ingrained  in  them  all  the  coarseness  that  belongs  to  men  who  have 
had  to  make  their  way  by  contact  with  the  gross  motives  that  rule 
the  struggle  for  supremacy  in  this  world.  To  the  end  they  retain 
that  coarseness.  The  whole  history  of  the  samurai  class,  which 
is  at  this  period  being  evolved  from  somewhat  heterogeneous  ele- 
ments, is  that  of  the  man  who  is  not  born  to  the  purple;  he  is  the 
soldier,  not  the  courtier,  which  perhaps  accounts  for  the  incongrui- 
ties of  the  warrior  immersed  in  the  doctrines  of  justice  and  benevo- 
lence as  laid  down  in  the  pages  of  Confucius  and  Mencius,  and  at 
the  same  time  glowers  rapturously  at  the  still  gory  head  of  his 
enemy — fruit  of  his  recent  vengeance. 

This  alternation  of  savage  passion  and  study  of  the  sages 
typifies  the  life  of  the  period.  The  Ashikaga  Shoguns  were  none 
of  them  great  men;  but  they  were  great  encouragers  of  the  arts 
of  the  time,  and  the  graver's  tool  and  the  manufacture  of  china  and 
pottery  became  of  importance  under  their  rule.  It  was  Yoshimitsu 
who  built  the  Golden  Pavilion  at  Kyoto.  It  was  Yoshimasa  who 
built  the  Silver  Pavilion  and  gave  the  greatest  encouragement  to 
all  the  fine  arts  and  aesthetics  of  his  day.  Of  the  people  themselves 
it  is  probable  that  they  suffered  horribly.  Famines  and  pestilence 
were  common  in  the  land.  A  village  or  hamlet  that  afforded 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE         131 

refuge  to  an  enemy  was  burnt  to  the  ground  as  punishment  by  the 
victor,  although  the  helpless  peasant  was  involved  in  no  fault. 
However,  they  had  not  yet  become  beasts  of  burden.  In  fact,  the 
general  disorder  of  the  times,  the  loosening  of  the  bonds  of  author- 
ity, had  probably  much  ameliorated  the  condition  of  those  of  the 
lower  classes  sprung  from  the  old  time  serfs.  When  a  man's 
strong  arm  was  of  value  his  individuality  counted  for  much,  and 
the  peasant  was  not  confined  within  the  iron  circle  of  his  caste.  It 
would  be  interesting  to  know  the  effect  that  these  constant  wars 
had  on  the  ratio  between  men  and  women  in  Japan.  Much  of  that 
influence  would  be  offset  by  the  practice  of  concubinage  which  has 
always  been  a  feature  of  Japanese  civilization.  Woman's  position 
is  decidedly  lower  than  under  the  old  regime,  and  perhaps  this  is  not 
entirely  to  be  attributed  to  the  growing  influence  of  the  Chinese 
classics,  a  particular  object  of  study  and  admiration  to  the  warrior 
class  through  its  elevation  of  the  dogma  of  loyalty.  Not  that  other 
means  of  keeping  down  the  surplus  were  not  adopted,  for  both  child 
murder  and  abortion  were  expedients  by  no  means  uncommon. 
That  in  these  chivalric  days — the  days  of  Bushido — but  little  con- 
sideration was  shown  to  the  weakness  of  sex  is  perhaps  not  badly 
instanced  by  a  contemporary  account  *  given  by  an  old  lady  of 
her  experiences  when  a  young  girl  during  the  uncertain  times  fol- 
lowing Hideyoshi's  death  in  1598.  They  were  besieged  in  a  castle 
belonging  to  their  master,  and  in  preference  to  being  present  at  the 
taking  of  the  castle  and  being  subjected  to  the  brutality  of  the  rude 
soldiery,  the  women  made  their  escape  under  conditions  of  peculiar 
hardship.  It  is  to  be  doubted  if  either  the  honour  or  the  weakness 
of  woman  received  any  more  consideration  in  those  flourishing 
times  than  it  did  from  the  adventurers  found  in  "  our  armies  in 
Flanders  "  when  a  town  was  taken  by  assault. 

At  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century  disintegration  had 
reached  its  extreme  limit.  A  central  government  could  be  said  to* 
be  non-existent  in  fact.  In  theory,  however,  its  shadow  was 

*Translated  by  Professor  B.  H.  Chamberlain.     Trans.  Asiatic    Soc.  Japan, 
vol.  vii.  pt.  2. 


132  SAKURAMBO 

always  before  men's  eyes,  and  the  man  had  come  who  conceived 
the  idea,  not  of  simply  snatching  a  few  square  miles  of  territory 
from  his  neighbours  but  of  restoring  the  actuality  of  the  central 
government — with  himself  of  course  as  the  head.     Ota  Nobunaga 
started  his  career  on  very  limited  means.     He  was  master  of  a 
small  fief  in  the  province  of  Owari.     This  he  gradually  enlarged  in 
the  usual  manner  until  he  \vas  master  of  the  whole  province.     A 
long,  lanky,  slab-sided,  loose- jointed  man,  he  was  a  born  soldier, 
and  as  enthusiastic  over  his  men  as  Frederick  the  Great.     That  he 
was  a  man  of  no  mean  political  ability  was  shown  in  his  ambitious 
ideal  and  the  skill  with  which  he  selected  his  agents  to  carry  it  out. 
At  his  right  hand  moreover  was  a  man  who  had  all  of  Frederick's 
ability,  political  as  well  as  martial.     A  peasant's  son  named  Toki- 
chiro,  afterwards  known  as  Toyotomi  Hideyoshi.     A  pretext  for 
further  extension  was  found  in  the  march  on  Kyoto  of  Imagawa, 
lord  of  the  provinces  of  Suruga,  Totomi,  and  Mikawa.     Nobunaga 
was  ridiculously  overmatched,  but  soldiership  won  the  day  and 
Imawaga's  host  was  utterly  broken.     lyeyasu,  an  inferior  daimyo, 
made  terms  with  Nobunaga  and  the  alliance  between  them  was 
from  this  time  never  broken.     lyeyasu  had  Nobunaga's  support  in 
the  North  and  protected  Nobunaga's  rear,  no  light  task  against  any 
attacks  from  the  powerful  barons  of  the  North,  especially  Takeda 
Shingen,  of  Kai,  Uyesugi  Kenshin  in  the  Northwest,  and  Ho  jo 
Ujiyasu  in  the  Kwanto.     The  assassination  of  the  Shogun  Yoshi- 
teru  by  one  of  his  retainers,  and  the  exclusion  of  his  brother  Yoshi- 
aki,  gave  Nobunaga  the  opportunity  to  widen  his  field.     He  em- 
braced  Yoshiaki's  cause,  marched  on  Kyoto,  scattered  the  conspira- 
tors, and  ruled  in  Yoshiaki's  name  as  Vice-Shogun.     The  period 
was  one  of  continual  warfare.     He  first  turned  his  attention  to  the 
country  immediately  to  the  north  of  Kyoto  and  crushed  resistance 
there.     The  monks  who  had  made  common  cause  with  his  enemies 
were  the  next  point  of  attack,  and  Hiesisan  was  practically  wiped 
out  in  fire  and  blood  in  1571.     In   1573  Yoshiaki  tried  to  rebel 
against  his  subjection.     Nobunaga  deposed  him  and  henceforth 
ruled  alone.     His  next  move  was  against  the  powerful  Mori  family 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE         133 

who  were  masters  of  practically  all  western  Japan.  Hideyoshi  at 
the  head  of  a  large  army  was  sent  against  the  province.  Every- 
where successful  he  sat  himself  down  before  Takamatsu,  a  castle 
on  the  Inland  Sea  in  the  province  of  Harima.  To  complete  his 
difficult  task  without  the  aid  of  Nobunaga  would  have  been  dan- 
gerous, and  on  the  point  of  victory  Hideyoshi  sent  for  him.  Nobu- 
naga left  his  fine  castle  of  Azuchi  on  Lake  Biwa,  built  on  European 
models,  and  sending  his  army  ahead  stopped  for  a  short  time  at 
Kyoto.  In  a  moment  of  horseplay  he  had  grievously  offended  one 
of  his  retainers,  Akechi  Mitsuhide.  This  man,  with  his  supportersr 
left  the  army  on  its  march,  hastened  back  to  Kyoto  and  attacked  the 
temple  in  which  Nobunaga  was  lodged.  Seeing  no  means  of 
escape,  Nobunaga  set  fire  to  the  building  and  committed  Jwra-kiri. 
In  some  respects  he  was  an  immense  loss  to  Japan.  A  man  of  the 
noble  class  he  commanded  the  respect  of  his  rank.  If  he  could 
have  lived  for  some  years,  with  the  assistance  of  Hideyoshi  as  his 
minister,  it  is  possible  that  the  succession  of  a  line  of  Shoguns 
trained  under  that  able  and  liberal  hand  might  have  written  the 
history  of  Japan  in  succeeding  ages  very  differently  from  what 
was  written. 

The  news  of  Akechi's  act  soon  reached  Hideyoshi.  Coming 
to  terms  with  Terumoto,  lord  of  Takamatsu,  he  started  for  Kyoto 
to  punish  the  assassins.  He  soon  collected  a  large  army,  caught 
Akechi  at  a  place  called  Yodo  near  Kyoto,  and  utterly  defeated  him. 
Akechi  escaped;  but  wandering  in  the  mountains  was  killed  by  the 
peasantry  and  his  head  brought  to  Kyoto.  Hideyoshi  assumed  the 
regency  for  Nobunaga's  grandson.  There  were,  however,  two  sons 
by  concubines.  These  found  adherents  and  there  was  much  severe 
fighting  before  Hideyoshi  settled  himself  firmly  in  the  seat  of 
government.  He  adopted  the  policy  of  Henry  V  of  England. 
Knowing  the  warlike  restless  habits  contracted  by  centuries  of  war- 
fare he  directed  this  restless  element  on  to  Korea,  and  the  bones  of 
thousands  left  bleaching  across  the  sea  materially  lightened  the 
task  of  his  successor.  Hideyoshi's  career  has  been  drawn  by  many 
writers,  and  they  are  practically  agreed  that  he,  son  of  a  peasant, 


134  SAKURAMBO 

was  the  greatest  man  that  has  ever  ruled  Japan.  In  like  manner  the 
greatest  king  that  ever  sat  on  the  English  throne  subsequent  to  the 
days  of  the  fifth  Henry  was  a  commoner — Oliver  Cromwell ;  and 
the  greatest  man  that  ever  occupied  the  throne  of  France  was  a 
bourgeois — Napoleon  Bonaparte. 

In  his  latter  days  Hideyoshi  had  but  little  internal  strife  to 
contend  with.  The  last  recalcitrant  was  Ho  jo  Ujimasu,  and  with 
his  fall  the  whole  Kwanto  came  into  the  hands  of  the  central  gov- 
ernment. Hideyoshi  turned  it  over  to  Tokugawa  lyeyasu  with 
instruction  to  move  the  capital  from  Odawara  to  the  fishing  village 
of  Yedo  at  the  head  of  Yedo  Bay.  .  He  died  in  1598  without  full 
knowledge  of  the  failure  of  his  plans  as  to  Korea,  although  it  can 
be  said  that  he  mistrusted  the  ability  or  the  pertinacity  of  his  suc- 
cessors in  carrying  them  out.  His  last  instructions  were  to  bring 
these  troops  back  to  Japan.  The  guardianship  of  his  young  son 
was  left  to  a  council  of  which  lyeyasu  was  the  head.  This  soon 
split,  nominally  at  least  over  the  more  or  less  good  intentions  of 
lyeyasu  as  to  the  regency.  With  a  vastly  inferior  army  lyeyasu 
met  the  enemy  at  a  place  on  .the  Nakasendo  called  Seki-ga-hara. 
Fortune  wavered  for  a  time,  but  with  the  aid  of  a  little  treachery 
settled  on  the  Tokugawa.  From  that  time,  1600,  the  government 
of  Japan  rested  in  the  hands  of  one  family,  up  to  the  restoration  of 
the  Imperial  house  in  1867.  For  fifteen  years  lyeyasu  was  busy  in 
consolidating  his  interests  which  were  mainly  threatened  by  Hide- 
yoshi's  son  and  his  partisans,  but  the  capture  of  Osaka  castle  and 
the  death  of  Hideyori  in  1615  put  an  end  to  the  last  pretensions  of 
any  but  the  Tokugawa  as  to  the  government  of  the  Island  Empire. 

Based  on  precedent  the  whole  of  lyeyasu's  system  was  directed 
to  maintaining  the  "  status  quo  "  and  the  supremacy  of  the  Toku- 
gawa family.  Any  form  of  innovation  was  a  source  of  danger. 
His  idea  was  to  take  present  customs,  well  understood  of  the  people, 
and  making  an  iron  frame  thereof  to  pour  society  into  it  and  allow 
it  to  stiffen  as  in  a  mould.  With  this  rigid  unvarying  formula, 
errors  and  weaknesses  inherent  in  individual  rulers  would  be  re- 
duced to  a  minimum.  That  he  did  his  work  well  is  shown  by  the 


THE    CENTRE    OF    SHIMOTSUKE  135 

test  of  time,  which  for  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  maintained  the 
working  of  the  machine  in  an  unbroken  period  of  peace.  That  he 
was  not  only  a  great  legist  but  a  statesman  is  shown  by  his  evolving 
such  harmony  out  of  the  chaos  of  interests  preceding  his  time. 
That  he  had  a  true  genius  of  perception  of  the  principles  lying  at 
the  bottom  of  Japanese  institutions  is  shown  by  the  skill  in  which 
these  heterogeneous  principles  were  moulded  into  one  organic 
whole.  He  found  the  thread  running  through  them  all — loyalty. 
That  Hideyoshi  was  head  and  shoulders  over  him  is  also  equally 
clear.  lyeyasu's  system  is  purely  selfish.  Paramount  to  every- 
thing is  the  Tokugawa  family.  For  that  he  devised  the  scheme  of 
exclusion  of  all  contact  with  foreign  nations.  It  is  safe  to  say  no 
such  idea  would  ever  have  entered  Hideyoshi's  brain.  He  had  far 
more  reliance  on  himself  and  on  the  Japanese  people.  In  place  of 
excluding  the  Spaniard  he  would  have  met  him  sword  in  hand  on 
the  soil  of  the  Philippines  rather  than  on  that  of  Japan.  Every 
action  of  Hideyoshi  showed  that  he  was  for  a  national  Japan.  The 
aggrandizement  of  the  individual  was  to  be  based  on  the  aggran- 
dizement of  the  nation.  A  succession  imbued  with  the  ideas  of 
Hideyoshi,  not  cramped  by  petty  personal  aims,  would  have  made 
the  history  of  Asia  very  different  reading  from  what  it  is  to-day. 
This  seventeenth  century  was  a  critical  period  in  the  world's 
history. 

lyeyasu's  system,  however  for  what  he  designed  it,  was  very 
perfect.  The  great  daimyo,  Satsuma,  Choshu,  Tosa,  were  little 
disturbed  in  their  internal  government,  but  the  Tokugawa  fiefs 
were  scattered  all  over  Japan.  These  subordinate  Tokugawa 
daimyo  were  not  strong  enough  to  be  dangerous  and  yet  were  a 
thorn  in  the  side  of  their  great  neighbours  and  a  constant  spy  on 
their  actions.  The  same  balance  was  kept  in  the  vast  fief,  the 
personal  property  of  the  Tokugawa  family.  A  very  strict  eye  was 
kept  over  these  more  personal  adherents.  They  were  freely  re- 
warded or  punished  for  good  government  or  misgovernment  by 
translation  to' other  fiefs  better  or  worse  as  their  conduct  called  for. 
They  were  held  to  strict  account  in  Yedo  for  the  conduct  of  theii- 


136  SAKURAMBO 

fiefs.  On  the  whole  the  supervision  from  headquarters  was  vigi- 
lant, and  the  people  suffered  less  from  arbitrary  exactions  under 
the  Tokugawa  than  they  did  under  the  larger  independent  dainii- 
ates,  where  they  were  more  subject  to  the  caprices  and  necessities 
of  a  man  who  was  purposely  driven  to  great  expenses  by  his  jealous 
overlord  in  Yedo.  Theoretically,  the  peasant  was  amerced  in  the 
Tokugawa  fiefs  four-tenths  of  the  produce  of  his  farm,  although 
this  was  often  raised  by  forced  loans  to  the  lord  from  the  farmers. 
In  the  independent  daimiates  these  figures  in  some  cases  rose  to 
eight-tenths  of  the  product.  In  addition,  however,  especially 
within  a  certain  radius  of  the  great  post  roads  along  which  the 
daimyo  travelled  on  their  compulsory  journeys  to  Yedo,  the  exac- 
tions of  forced  labour  of  men  and  horses  were  most  severe.  At 
times  hundreds  and  even  thousands  of  men  were  called  on  to  supply 
transport  for  the  great  trains  of  these  nobles.  As  we  have  said 
lyeyasu's  system  was  conservative.  For  this  purpose  local  cus- 
toms were  touched  as  little  as  possible.  On  the  contrary,  every 
effort  was  made  to  crystallize  them  and  make  them  still  more  bind- 
ing by  incorporating  them  into  the  code.  One  great  source  of 
disorder  in  the  State  had  been  the  virile  but  disorderly  men,  who 
taking  advantage  of  the  times,  had  forced  themselves  to  the  front, 
and  to  whom  changes  of  the  times  were  their  opportunity.  This 
element  was  carefully  eliminated  by  the  formation  of  a  caste 
system.  The  warrior  class  was  now  carefully  limited  in  its  mem- 
bership. Degradation  was  possible.  Elevation  was  almost  im- 
possible. Peasants,  artisans,  merchants  were  carefully  limited  to 
their  own  classes.  Their  rights  and  especially  their  duties  were 
carefully  defined.  The  personal  equation  was  almost  eliminated, 
and  abstract  justice  had  as  little  application  to  a  case  arising  under 
the  code  as  ever  arose  under  the  old  Roman  law  of  the  Twelve 
Tables. 

What  strikes  the  observer  of  old  Japanese  systems  is  not 
underorganization  but  overorganization.  The  Tokugawa  did  not 
originate  this,  but  simply  codified  it.  The  most  striking  feature 
is  the  thoroughness  with  which  the  people  are  set  to  watch  each 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE         137 

other.  The  go-nin-kumi,  or  five  family  system,  is  lost  in  shades 
of  antiquity.  A  village,  for  instance,  was  made  up  of  these  little 
five-house  units,  the  members  of  which  might  be  and  probably  were 
widely  separated  in  the  social  scale,  the  system  being  based  on  con- 
tiguity alone,  and  were  responsible  for  the  acts  of  each  other.  One 
member  was  chosen  as  the  local  representative,  these  heads  of 
kumi  selected  members  for  the  council,  and  this  council  had  its  head 
or  Mayor,  often  hereditary,  sometimes  elected,  and  a  survival  it  is 
considered  of  the  former  bailiff  of  the  lord's  fief.  The  lord  himself 
was  represented  by  an  overseer  (daikwan)  who  had  charge  of  sev- 
eral villages,  and  appeal  could  be  made  to  him  if  disputes  arose 
which  could  not  be  settled  by  the  villagers  themselves.  Usually 
they  reached  no  farther  as  the  overseer  was  supposed  to  consult  the 
head  authorities.  However,  under  certain  conditions  in  the  Toku- 
gawa  fiefs  cases  could  reach  Yedo  itself.  This  seems  a  very 
efficient  system  with  a  broad  basis  of  appeal.  Let  us  see  how  it 
worked.  The  last  thing  intended  was  that  the  authority  of  the 
lord  should  be  sapped  by  indiscriminate  appeal  to  Yedo.  The 
peasants  in  the  case  of  gross  injustice  could  so  appeal ;  with  the 
certainty  of  punishment  more  or  less  severe  if  they  did  so.  Disputes 
in  first  instance  were  to  be  settled  by  arbitration.  If  between  mem- 
bers of  a  kumi  by  the  head  of  the  kumi;  if  between  the  members  of 
a  village  community,  by  the  council ;  if  between  neighbouring  vil- 
lages, it  might  reach  the  daikwan.  In  some  cases  even  this  source 
of  justice  was  polluted  or  too  busy  in  enforcing  the  harsh  exactions 
of  the  lord.  In  such  cases  the  peasants  assembled,  marched  to 
Yedo,  and  besieged  the  gate  of  their  lord's  yashlki  or  town  resi- 
dence until  their  petition  was  received.  An  appeal  to  the  Shogun's 
Council  was  even  possible,  although  it  meant  certain  stripes  and 
imprisonment.  Such  an  act  as  that  of  Sakura  Sogoro — thrusting 
a  petition  into  the  Shogun's  litter — meant  death  under  the  crudest 
torture.  In  this  case  his  whole  innocent  family  were  crucified 
with  him.  Fair  as  the  law  reads,  I  think  we  can  say  under  these 
circumstances  that  the  right  of  petition  was  somewhat  limited. 

That  much  misery  was  caused  by  extravagance  of  the  lord  and 


138  SAKURAMBO 

oppression  of  the  peasantry,  to  pay  for  the  extensive  competition 
set  up  in  Yedo  and  fostered  by  the  Tokugawa  with  the  specific  pur- 
pose of  keeping  the  daimyo  poor,  is  patient  enough  from  the 
accounts  that  have  come  down  to  us  from  those  still  recent  times. 
That  however  an  effort  was  made  to  administer  justice  between 
man  and  man  by  painstaking  officials  is  also  just  as  patent.  The 
fault  lay  not  with  them  but  with  the  inhumanity  of  the  system  they 
had  to  administer.  Some  of  them  exercise  all  their  powers  of 
casuistry  to  soften  the  harsh  code.  I  will  give  one  instance  cited 
by  Arai  Hakuseki  in  his  autobiography.  He  was  acting  as  official 
of  the  Shogun  in  1711,  and  the  following  case  was  referred  to  him 
for  an  opinion.  It  is  typical  of  the  law  and  its  general  application 
which  is  based  on  duty  and  filial  conduct.  A  woman  whose  hus- 
band was  missing  found  a  body  floating  face  downward  near  the 
bank  of  the  river.  On  appeal,  her  father  and  brother  refused  to 
turn  the  body  so  that  she  could  see  the  face.  She  then  appealed  to 
the  headman  of  the  village,  who  turned  the  body  which  was  that  of 
her  husband.  Circumstances  led  to  the  arrest  of  the  father  and 
brother.  They  confessed  the  crime  and  were  executed.  The 
woman  was  imprisoned  and  sentenced  to  be  sold  as  a  slave,  on  the 
ground  that  she  was  guilty  of  unfilial  conduct  in  informing  against 
her  father.  Hakuseki  stood  alone  in  his  opinion  that  the  woman 
should  be  released.  He  exercises  a  great  deal  of  casuistry  to  show- 
that  such  a  judgment  would  involve  treason  to  a  lord  in  favour  of  a 
father,  and  took  the  more  specious  ground  that  the  woman  could 
not  have  been  guilty  of  unfilial  conduct  as  she  did  not  know  at 
the  time  that  it  was  her  husband's  body,  and  that  the  father  was  the 
murderer.  A  harsh  code,  a  harsh  interpretation,  but  at  least  one 
earnest  kindly  mind  at  work  to  modify  its  harshness.  The  woman 
was  released  and  became  a  nun. 

The  practice  of  arbitration  of  their  differences  among  them- 
selves was  therefore  not  only  encouraged  by  the  Government,  but 
was  impressed  on  the  lower  classes  by  the  harsh  if  just  treatment 
they  received  if  they  dared  to  trouble  their  superiors  with  their 
difficulties.  Hence  at  a  very  early  period  we  find  the  trades  settling 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE         139 

all  their  difficulties  in  this  manner,  and  with  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury what  can  properly  be  described  as  guilds  governed  the  whole 
mercantile  community.  We  have  no  idea  in  these  days  of  unre- 
stricted movement  how  terrible  could  be  the  tyranny  of  these 
organizations.  He  who  did  not  submit  to  the  decision  of  his  guild 
became  even  worse  than  an  outcast,  for  even  the  outcasts  had  their 
organization.  He  was  an  outlaw.  One  in  law  as  well  as  in  fact  if 
he  left  his  native  place  to  seek  support  elsewhere,  for  no  man  could 
move  without  a  passport.  To  spend  the  night  outside  his  own 
house  required  the  production  of  the  proper  papers  certifying  to  the 
legitimacy  of  his  mission.  No  wonder  that  under  such  a  crushing 
tyranny  the  individual  became  an  automaton  merely  to  register, 
mentally  and  physically,  the  will  of  the  men  in  whose  hands  lay  his 
livelihood.  The  leaders  of  the  guild  were  chosen,  it  is  fair  to  say, 
not  only  for  wealth  but  for  ability,  but  in  those  uncertain  times  the 
two  were  almost  synonymous.  So  strong  has  been  the  impression 
created  by  this  early  training  that  it  has  practically  full  sweep  to- 
day. This  paramount  importance  of  the  guild  had  its  good  points. 
An  offence  against  the  avowed  rules  of  the  guild,  which  of  neces- 
sity must  be  based  on  fair  play  between  the  members,  enforced 
in  their  dealings  inter  se  perhaps  as  much  integrity  as  would  be 
found  in  any  other  local  mercantile  community  system.  That  it, 
however,  nourished  any  such  ideals  as  are  found  in  our  western 
commercial  systems  was  not  the  case.  It  was  an  integrity  simply 
confined  not  to  general  principles  but  to  the  membership  of  the 
guild.  The  guild's  rules  furnished  no  ground  for  fair  play  in 
dealing  with  the  stranger  outside  the  guild.  That  in  their  limited 
scope  the  system  worked  well  is  shown  by  the  great  extension 
given  to  a  credit  system.  But  few  transactions  were  carried  on  in 
cash.  Osaka  was  the  great  wholesale  port  and  shipped  to  Yedo, 
the  great  consumers'  mart,  tons  of  produce  which  was  carried  by  a 
line  of  junks  in  almost  constant  movement  between  the  two  points. 
Yedo  shipped  great  quantities  of  grain  from  the  Kwanto  south- 
ward. Districts  on  the  Sea  of  Japan  once  or  twice  in  the  year  sent 
their  little  fleet  with  the  accumulated  produce  of  the  district  to 


140  SAKURAMBO 

Osaka  as  the  centre  of  distribution.  Banks  and  exchange  offices 
flourished  and  all  kinds  of  commercial  paper  were  freely  circulated. 
When  time  came  for  settlement  Osaka  or  Yedo  struck  the  balance 
and  the  gold  was  shipped  from  one  to  the  other  according  to  the 
debit  side  of  the  ledger.  There  was  a  very  large  trade  carried  on, 
and  the  men  who  conducted  it  were  naturally  men  of  no  mean 
ability.  Apart  from  any  encouragement  of  the  Government  to 
settle  differences  out  of  court  we  can  understand,  although  Mr. 
Wigmore  seems  to  think  the  influence  overrated,  the  reluctance  of 
these  men  to  enter  those  sacred  precincts,  where  at  the  entrance  they 
were  required  to  prostrate  themselves  on  their  bellies  face  to  the 
ground,  and  so  humbly  drag  themselves  into  the  judgment  chamber. 
The  Tokuwaga  Shogunate  was  a  government  built  therefore 
on  force.  As  we  would  say  in  these  modern  times,  it  rested  on 
bayonets.  Let  us  turn  for  a  moment  to  the  military  caste  to  which 
lyeyasu  gave  much  attention  as  the  important  prop  of  his  house. 
The  samurai  class  have  no  exact  counterpart  in  European  life. 
In  Europe  it  was  the  Nobility  and  the  Commons.  The  intervening 
class,  the  Bourgeois,  were  connected  with  the  latter  and  most  dis- 
tinctly were  not  men  of  the  sword.  Europe  reversed  the  order  of 
its  Commons  and  placed  the  man  of  brains  above  the  tiller  of  the 
soil;  a  sequence  by  the  way  that  had  tremendous  political  results. 
The  European  Noblesse  corresponded  closely  with  what  in  Japan 
was  known  as  the  kuge  class  of  great  families  attached  to  the  court 
of  the  Emperor.  No  matter  how  wide  the  range  between  them, 
from  a  peer  of  France  to  a  cadet  son  of  an  impoverished  country 
gentleman  who  had  nothing  but  his  sword  for  patrimony,  they  all 
belonged  to  the  same  caste.  This  was  by  no  means  the  history  of 
the  Japanese  samurai.  It  did  include  a  large  number  of  men  of 
noble  family,  but  its  real  basis  was  laid  during  the  adventurous 
times  which  ushered  in  the  Minamoto  Shogunate  near  the  end  of 
the  twelfth  century.  For  nearly  four  hundred  years  it  is  in  gradual 
formation  as  a  class  but  its  elements  are  anything  but  stable.  It 
is  a  distinctly  warrior  class.  Its  connection  is  with  the  Daimyo  and 
the  Shogun  in  sharp  contradistinction  to  the  kuge  grouped  around 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE         141 

the  Emperor.  Perhaps  in  European  life  the  nearest  counterpart  to 
them  are  the  free  companies  which  in  the  fourteenth  century  begin 
to  make  their  appearance  in  Italy,  and  to  the  vigour  of  whose  arm 
and  the  disorders  of  the  times  more  than  one  petty  prince  owed  his 
principality  or  duchy,  and  who  rewarded  his  followers  according 
to  the  plunder  he  obtained  by  the  aid  of  these  Pretorians.  This 
class  of  men  lyeyasu  took  and  formed  into  a  caste  whose  rules  were 
made  most  severe  as  their  privileges  were  enlarged.  To  prevent 
warfare  from  degenerating  into  savagery  some  form  of  code  must 
•exist  to  govern  the  relations  between  the  men  engaged  in  it.  lye- 
yasu devised  nothing  new.  He  simply  classified  the  existing  rules 
which  were  based  on  a  study  of  the  Chinese  classics,  whose  severely 
simple  and  rational  form  were  especially  attractive  to  a  class  of  men 
who  by  profession  would  naturally  be  little  given  to  speculation. 
\Yhere  the  adjustment  of  private  differences  must  be  left  largely  to 
the  action  of  the  individual,  as  even  to  this  day  is  to  some  degree 
permitted  in  the  West,  it  can  be  seen  that  if  principles  of  justice  and 
right  conduct  are  to  rule,  and  to  prevent  a  degeneration  to  the  right 
of  the  strongest,  it  is  necessary  to  inculcate  a  code  which  is  gov- 
erned simply  by  "  esprit  de  corps."  Not  the  punishment  of  the 
law  is  to  visit  offenders  against  this  code  but  loss  of  honour,  degra- 
dation from  the  caste,  to  which  is  to  be  preferred  death.  Such  a 
code  will  command  a  respect  that  no  written  law  can  command. 
Aided  by  the  fact  that  those  to  whom  it  appeals  are  men  under  an 
iron  military  discipline,  where  unity  of  thought  and  purpose  is 
enforced  from  highest  to  lowest,  it  can  be  seen  that  each  one  will 
keep  a  jealous  eye  on  its  infractions.  In  Japan  this  code  was  given 
the  name  of  Bushido. 

The  code  has  had  its  eloquent  expounders.  Courage,  tender- 
ness for  weakness  and  misfortune,  courtesy,  unswerving  truth,  a 
keen  sense  of  personal  honour,  self-control  in  the  moment  of  vic- 
tory as  in  the  moment  of  defeat.  All  these  had  their  place  in 
Bushido.  Its  philosophy  was  of  a  high  quality.  Its  whole  tone 
was  duty  not  pleasure.  To  face  the  trials  and  combats  of  this 
world,  not  to  shirk  them  by  retirement.  Its  requirement  was  not 


SAKURAMBO 

to  temporize  or  circumvent  a  difficulty  but  boldly  to  face  and  over- 
come it.  Life  was  a  secondary  consideration  entirely,  the  accom- 
plishment of  the  knightly  task  was  the  first,  the  only  consideration. 
No  one  can  cavil  at  the  precepts  of  Bushido.  Where  it  falls  to  the 
ground,  the  fatal  weakness  in  its  structure  to  western  minds,  lies 
in  its  ideal.  Bushido  does  not  fail  to  take  some  great  moral  pre- 
cept as  its  foundation.  It  rests  on  Loyalty.  But  loyalty  to  what  ? 
To  one's  lord.  To  his  chief  the  samurai  is  to  be  loyal  to  the  death, 
and  only  survive  him  in  order  to  avenge  him.  In  other  words,  the 
centre  of  this  grand  system  is  made  the  petty  actions  and  gross 
motives  of  a  man  whose  interests,  material  and  political,  may  lead 
to  fishing  in  very  doubtful  waters.  There  is  no  compromise  here. 
The  faithful  samurai  can  remonstrate  if  he  disapproves  of  his  lord's 
course.  He  can  commit  suicide  if  he  is  forced  to  condone  what  he 
does  not  approve.  But  there  is  no  alternative  between  suicide  and 
giving  active  support  to  his  master  when  called  on.  With  this  in 
mind  we  can  understand  the  strange  incongruities  of  noblest  actions 
and  basest  crimes  performed  in  the  name  of  Bushido. 

Contrast  for  a  moment  the  knightly  code  of  Europe  with  the 
code  of  Bushido.  There  is  not  a  single  attribute  of  that  code  that 
is  not  found  in  the  western  code  of  knightly  honour  and  duty. 
Courage,  benevolence,  relief  of  the  poor  and  distressed,  courtesy, 
truth,  honour,  loyalty,  were  all  a  sine  qua  non  to  the  European 
knight;  but  in  his  ideal  there  lay  a  vast  difference.  His  war  cry 
was  "  For  God  and  the  King  "  and  he  never  reversed  the  order,  and 
the  good  knight  never  confounded  them.  It  is  only  fair  to  say  that 
in  this  he  found  a  valuable  supporter  in  the  Church,  which  no 
matter  how7  it  acted  in  politics  and  practice  always  in  theory  pre- 
sented a  very  high  standard  to  its  followers.  Unlike  the  Church  in 
the  East — Buddhism — it  preached  practical  religion,  not  dreamy 
renunciation.  Hence  the  militant  idea  of  the  Church,  justice  and 
mercy  between  men,  ruled  over  and  above  the  rights  of  kings  and 
princes,  and  in  the  end  the  Church  stood  as  arbitrator  of  questions 
of  moral  right  and  wrong.  The  result  was  a  class  of  men  who 
were  absolutely  inconceivable  under  the  Japanese  code  of  Bushido. 


THE    CENTRE    OF    SHIMOTSUKE 

The  knight-errant,  passing  from  place  to  place,  setting  up  his  shield 
with  invitation  to  those  who  had  woes  and  wrongs  to  be  redressed 
to  appeal  to  his  right  arm  and  the  Judgment  of  God.  I  am  not 
now  speaking  of  the  practice  of  knight-errantry.  That  it  must 
fall  widely  short  of  its  ideal  was  a  foregone  conclusion.  But  we 
cannot  help  feeling  a  tenderness  for  it  as  we  listen  to  its  exposition 
from  the  mouth  of  its  last  representative.  Don  Quixote  has 
already  laid  the  basis  of  the  system  in  the  Golden  Age,  but  it  is  at 
the  table  of  the  Duchess  that  he  expounded  the  principles  and  prac- 
tice of  knight-errantry,  and  we  can  well  leave  its  defence  to  his 
lips.  If  it  were  not  for  his  irregular  unbridled  temperament  it 
could  be  said  that  in  the  Japanese  samurai  in  action  we  find  more  of 
Cyrano  de  Bergerac  than  any  other  European  type.  Bayard  the 
Knight,  sans  peur  et  sans  reproche,  faithful  to  his  king  heavenly 
and  earthly,  finds  no  place  in  the  theory  of  Bushidd. 

Much  stress  is  laid  on  this  element  of  loyalty  to  prince  in 
Japanese  Bushidd,  as  if  it  wrere  an  exceptional  quality  or  exception- 
ally developed  in  Japanese  life.  To  me  it  seems  as  if  it  was  due 
more  to  narrowness  of  range  than  loftiness  of  ideal.  Treason  is 
an  extremely  rare  occurrence  in  western  annals.  There  is  but  one 
instance  in  American  history — Benedict  Arnold;  for  the  actions 
and  schemes  of  Aaron  Burr  were  more  those  of  an  adventurer  than 
of  a  man  meditating  wrong  to  his  country.  And  when  we  take 
into  consideration  the  history  of  the  times  and  the  divided  allegi- 
ance possible  under  the  conditions,  the  constancy  of  men  and  lead- 
ers is  surprising.  Once  their  stand  is  taken  they  stood  by  the  cause 
through  good  and  evil  fortune.  In  European  history  we  look 
almost  in  vain  for  the  man  for  revenge  or  profit  to  betray  his 
country.  Count  Julian's  name  stands  practically  alone  in  Spanish 
annals.  There  was  a  wade  field  for  such  operations  in  European 
politics.  A  man  had  frequent  opportunities  to  turn  his  political 
coat,  and,  on  the  debatable  ground  where  a  man  hardly  knew  what 
nationality  was,  often  did  so  to  save  his  skin  if  not  his  property; 
but  men  clung  closely  to  the  political  fortunes  of  their  leaders,  and 
conquest  by  the  rising  States  of  Europe  soon  settled  boundary  lines, 


144  SAKURAMBO 

and  wars  became  national  not  personal.  There  is  one  feature  of 
Bushido  that  necessarily  attracts  attention.  The  almost  savage 
indifference  to  life  as  exemplified  in  the  numerous — one  could  say 
trifling — occasions  from  which  suicide  was  the  only  exit.  It  seems 
almost  impossible  that  men  should  have  been  able  to  live  under  a 
system  which  practically  forbade  one  to  take  thought  of  the  mor- 
row. And  yet  they  did  so,  and  men  do  so  to-day.  Men  in  Europe 
go  about  their  business  and  their  pleasures,  although  the  intrigues 
of  unscrupulous  ambitious  men  may  in  twenty-four  hours  call  the 
lawyer  from  his  office,  the  clerk  from  his  desk,  and  the  mechanic 
from  his  bench,  to  undertake  the  uncongenial  task  of  cutting  the 
throat  of  his  vis-a-vis  across  the  international  boundary.  Men  dance 
and  work  and  amuse  themselves  on  the  top  of  a  mine  of  dynamite, 
which  a  spark  may  explode  and  make  the  whole  of  Europe  a  battle- 
ground such  as  has  not  been  witnessed  for  fifteen  hundred  years. 

Beauty  of  thought  is  no  test  of  civilization.  Some  of  the 
most  beautiful  thoughts  are  to  be  attributed  to  the  savage  tribes  of 
the  North  American  Indian.  Let  us  turn  for  a  moment  to  the 
practice  of  Bushido.  That  the  system  is  fair  to  look  upon  we  will 
grant.  That  it  was  any  better  than  the  system  that  was  and  is  in 
force  in  the  West  we  will  deny.  And  that  in  the  day  of  its  glory 
the  application  was  any  more  vigorous  East  than  West  we  will  also 
deny.  Fortunately  we  cannot  blame  Bushido  for  the  development 
of  Japanese  history  any  more  than  we  can  blame  Chivalry  for  the 
many  questionable  acts  done  in  its  day.  In  both  cases  history  is 
made  up  in  the  early  days  of  many  acts  of  violence,  alliances  and 
intrigues  due  to  most  questionable  motives,  and  a  disregard  for 
the  rights  of  the  weak  and  oppressed,  that  were  the  very  reverse  of 
the  principles  inculcated  by  both  codes.  In  Japan  as  in  Europe 
Front  de  Boeuf  was  the  usual  character,  not  Ivanhoe.  Many  noble 
characters  display  themselves  in  the  barons'  wars  of  Japan,  but 
violence,  intrigue,  treachery,  assassination,  was  not  only  the  commoi 
weapon  among  political  rivals,  but  often  found  its  wray  into  a  man's 
household.  Enough  has  been  said  as  to  the  actual  condition  o] 
the  theoretical  heads  of  the  State — Emperor  and  Shogun — 1( 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE         145 

show  that  loyalty  to  them  is  very  theoretical  indeed.  For  a  time 
as  lyeyasu  tightened  the  hold  of  the  Government  over  these  men 
the  interpretation  of  the  code  was  left  to  a  class  better  qualified  to 
direct  its  application.  As,  however,  the  hand  of  the  Government 
weakened  its  lack  of  real  moral  bases  made  itself  felt,  and  the  code 
of  the  Samurai  as  expounded  by  the  lower  members  of  that  class 
during  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century  was  anything  but  edify- 
ing. What  are  we  to  think  of  a  code  which  justifies  murderous 
attacks  on  unarmed  foreigners  and  in  one  case  on  a  woman  ?  The 
plea  is  entered  that  it  wras  to  punish  violation  of  the  custom  of  the 
country.  So  much  the  worse  for  a  country  to  be  guided  by  such  a 
code.  If  these  attacks,  if  the  numerous  political  assassinations, 
had  been  made  by  roughs  or  by  the  dregs  of  the  populace,  we  could 
understand  them  as  due  to  weakness  of  the  Government  and  inabil- 
ity to  keep  order  in  the  community.  The  Government  was  weak, 
and  the  very  men  who  took  advantage  of  such  weakness  to  engage 
in  these  cowardly  attacks  were  men  who  swaggered  about  "  the 
honour  of  a  Samurai/'  The  knight  in  Europe  met  his  foe  face  to 
face,  weapon  in  hand.  Japanese  history  is  too  much  a  series  of 
lying  in  ambush,  hiding  under  bridges,  taking  every  opportunity  to 
rush  upon  the  enemy  by  surprise  and  cut  him  down  before  he  had 
opportunity  to  resist.  Bushido  so  much  heard  of  at  present  is  a 
regeneration  more  in  the  nature  of  the  regeneration  of  Shinto. 
Not  the  actual  continuance  of  an  always  existing  spirit  of  the 
nation,  but  the  revivification  of  a  long  lost  unity  of  patriotism 
dulled  for  ages  by  the  existence  of  the  feudal  system.  And  such 
a  Bushido  is  worth  a  thousand  times  the  old  loyalty  to  a  petty  chief, 
this  transference  to  the  nation  itself  through  the  symbol  of  the  head 
of  the  State  and  Emperor.  But  the  unbroken  sequence  seems  to 
me  to  be  historically  false  in  the  one  case  as  in  the  other,  more  so 
in  that  of  Bushido  than  in  that  of  Shinto. 

There  is  one  other  point  worth  going  into  in  this  connection, 
for  it  is  sometimes  brought  up  against  our  modern  western  civiliza- 
tion. How  far  is  it  based  not  on  high  moral  principle  but  on  the 
maxim  that  "honesty  is  the  best  policy?"  That  altruism  is  a 

10 


146 


SAKURAMBO 


keynote  of-  the  West  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  take  the  trouble  to 
prove,  as  the  history  of  philanthropy  is  a  standing  monument  to  it. 
But  more  than  that,  a  yery  wide  spirit  of  trust  has  prevailed 
through  the  community  the  very  extent  of  which  has  been  marked 
and  proved  by  the  efforts  to  punish  breaches  of  such  confidence  in 
the  public  uprightness.  Turning  to  the  pages  of  a  great  English 
writer,  Sir  Henry  Maine  says,  "  but  the  very  character  of  these 
frauds  shows  closely  that,  before  they  became  possible  the  moral 
obligations  of  which  they  are  the  breach  must  have  been  more 
proportionately  developed.  It  is  the  confidence  reposed  and  de- 
served by  the  many  which  affords  facilities  for  the  bad  faith  of  the 
few,  so  that,  if  colossal  examples  of  dishonesty  occur,  there  is  no 
surer  conclusion  than  that  scrupulous  honesty  is  displayed  in  the 
average  of  transactions  which,  in  the  particular  case,  have  supplied 
the  delinquent  with  his  opportunity."  Legal  honesty  among  the 
western  commercial  classes  cuts  a  very  small  figure  in  the  total. 
The  general  spirit  of  fairness  in  the  community  is  a  far  more 
important  item.  You  can  base  this  ultimately  on  utilitarianism  if 
you  wish,  but  it  can  be  pointed  out  that  you  can  also  reduce  any 
system  of  morals — even  that  of  Confucius  or  Mencius,  or  Bushido 
itself — to  the  same  basis  of  Mill's  philosophy.  And  advocates  of 
the  said  systems  of  morals  can  equally  say,  one  to  another :  "  Do 
you  bite  your  thumb  at  me,  sir?  " 

The  comprehensive  mind  of  lyeyasu  laid  down  the  broad 
outlines  of  the  system.  lyemitsu  devoted  himself  to  filling  in  the 
chinks  and  crannies  through  which  might  filter  influences  dele- 
terious to  the  family  interest.  Not  only  were  foreigners  excluded 
from  Japan,  but  the  Japanese  on  penalty  of  death  were  forbidden  to 
leave  Japan,  and  all  vessels  were  cut  down  to  a  size  only  fit  for  the 
coasting  trade.  Ocean  traffic  ceased.  Wrapped  up  in  their  isola- 
tion the  Japanese  developed  a  wonderfully  complete  civilization. 
During  this  peace  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  their  art  reached 
a  minuteness  of  detail,  and  a  skill  and  certainty  in  execution  of  that 
detail,  that  is  marvellous.  Philosophy  and  letters,  together  with  a 
refined  but  almost  grotesque  etiquette,  filled  the  time  of  their  upper 


THE  CENTRE  OF  SHIMOTSUKE        147 

classes.  What  their  literature  seems  to  have  lacked  was  breadth  of 
view.  Turned  in  to  literally  feed  on  itself,  forbidden  to  engage  in 
new  fields,  the  virility  of  able  minds  turned  itself  to  form.  With 
the  pomp  and  finish  of  an  elaborate  etiquette  carried  into  the 
minutest  details  of  life  there  was  mingled  luxury  and  extravagance. 
Men  who  wasted  their  substance  in  maintaining  great  households 
and  rivalry  in  display  were  little  to  be  feared,  and  the  Shogunate 
deliberately  enforced  a  style  of  living  beyond  the  means  of  those 
who  might  be  feared  as  possible  rivals.  Only  on  the  lower  classes 
was  sobriety  and  frugality  enforced.  The  great  nobles  were  ex- 
pected to  uphold  their  rank  with  small  regard  to  their  revenues. 
These  were  the  days  of  the  magnificent  embroidered  and  brocaded 
robes  of  which  the  traveller  sees  so  many  specimens,  some  genuine 
and  many  manufactured  for  to-day's  demands.  The  luxury  of 
living  reached  into  every  crevice  of  the  national  life.  It  was  the 
age  of  decadence,  and  sometimes  developed  into  questionable  paths 
better  described  in  the  pages  of  Juvenal  and  Suetonius  than  in  a 
book  of  to-day.  It  was  very  picturesque  these  trains  of  daimyo 
and  their  retainers,  the  minutiae  of  their  tea  ceremony  and  of  their 
incense  parties,  their  careful  study  of  the  aesthetics  of  flowers  or 
of  a  garden,  their  absorption  before  some  masterpiece  created  by 
comparatively  few  strokes  on  the  shining  silk.  No  wonder  artists 
mourn  over  its  downfall,  but  any  civilization  thus  turned  in  on 
itself  was  bound  to  decay.  Nations,  as  people,  must  have  the  sins 
and  shortcomings  of  others  held  up  before  their  eyes  to  realize  their 
own.  Shut  up  within  themselves,  as  was  the  case  with  Rome  and 
with  the  old  regime  of  France,  their  system  had  become  ripe  and 
had  to  be  either  regenerated  or  amputated.  We  cannot  of  course 
compare  the  brilliant  court  of  the  Grand  Monarque  with  the  much 
narrower  development  of  an  aristocracy  as  found  in  Japan.  The 
broad  life  and  interests,  the  gay  and  malicious  wit  of  the  Salons 
seeking  food  for  its  intellect  no  matter  at  wrhat  cost  to  the  future, 
the  generous  philosophy  with  mankind  for  its  object,  finds  no  proto- 
type in  Japan ;  but  the  old  regime  in  France  was  too  much  ahead  of 
its  contemporaries.  It  too  was  turned  in  on  itself  to  feed  on  its 


148 


SAKURAMBO 


own  vices  until,  by  a  species  of  self-poisoning  well  understood  in 
medical  science,  came  first  enervation  and  finally  destruction. 

All  this  luxury  at  the  court  of  the  Tokugawa  had  of  course  to 
be  paid  for  and  there  remained  but  one  source  from  which  to  raise 
the  revenue — the  people.  If  gayety  and  extravagant  living  was  the 
rule  in  Yedo  we  hear  of  riots  and  agrarian  uprisings  in  town  and 
country.  Professor  Droppers  tells  us  that  within  one  hundred  and 
fifty  years  there  were  twenty-two  famines,  of  which  eleven  were 
very  destructive.  We  will  take  some  details  from  his  translation 
and  that  of  Mr.  Collier  of  the  report  made  by  Rakuo,  Minister  of 
Finance  under  the  Shogun  lyenari.  It  refers  to  the  great  famine 
of  1783.  "  The  famine  made  itself  felt  especially  in  the  North. 
A  witness  worthy  of  faith  reports  to  me  that  of  five  hundred  houses 
of  a  village  thirty  only  had  means  of  subsistence.  The  inhabitants 
of  the  rest  had  perished."  They  not  only  eat  cats  and  dogs,  "  all 
eat  the  dead,  but,  as  the  bodies  of  the  dead  became  rotten,  many 
killed  the  dying,  to  pot  the  flesh  in  order  to  preserve  it  longer." 
.  .  .  "  A  farmer  went  to  his  neighbour  and  said,  '  My  wife 
and  one  of  my  sons  have  already  died  from  want  of  food.  My 
remaining  son  is  certain  to  die  within  a  few  days,  so  I  wish  to 
kill  him  while  his  flesh  is  still  eatable,  but  being  his  father,  I  do 
not  dare  to  raise  the  sword  against  him,  so  I  beg  you  to  kill  the 
boy  for  me.'  The  neighbour  agreed  to  do  this,  but  stipulated  that 
he  should  get  a  part  of  the  flesh  as  reward  for  his  service.  This 
was  agreed  to  and  the  neighbour  killed  the  boy.  As  soon  as  the 
deed  was  done,  the  farmer,  who  stood  by,  struck  his  neighbour  with 
a  sword  and  killed  him,  saying  that  he  *  was  very  glad  to  avenge  his 
son  and  at  the  same  time  have  double  the  quantity  of  food.'  ' 
.  .  .  "  The  cities  are  to-day  full  of  incendiaries  and  male- 
factors, for  the  greater  part  from  the  provinces,  that  misery  has 
driven  from  their  villages.  If  the  provinces  were  not  oppressed,  if 
they  preserved  the  old  family  relations,  the  peasants  \vould  not 
come  into  the  towns  but  for  exceptional  reasons;  when  they  did 
not  find  work,  they  would  hasten  to  return  to  their  homes.  But  the 
provinces  are  in  distress;  all  rush  to  the  towns.  Driven  by  an 


THE    CENTRE    OF    SHIMOTSUKE  U9 

extravagant  mode  of  luxury,  the  princes,  the  functionaries,  the 
rich,  put  liveries  on  all  these  people.  Their  antechambers  are 
filled  with  a  crowd  of  servitors  who  do  nothing  but  drink  and  play. 
The  best  of  these  lackeys  are  content  to  get  drunk  and  to  allow  the 
house  to  take  fire ;  the  others  steal  and  set  fire  to  it  to  conceal  their 
misdeeds.  The  true  cause  of  these  crimes  is  to  be  sought  in  the 
carelessness  of  the  masters  and  their  insensate  luxury."  These  are 
not  words  from  the  pages  of  La  Bruyere  or  of  Arthur  Young 
describing  the  France  of  pre-revolutionary  days.  They  are 
describing  the  great  famine  of  Temmei  and  the  land  of  Japan  in 
the  heyday  of  the  Tokugawa  Shogunate.  Those  "  happy  days  " 
of  old  Japan  so  lamented  by  artists. 

After  all  it  is  the  republican  leaven  lying  at  the  bottom  of  all 
of  us  in  the  West  that  has  been  the  salvation  of  the  people.  It  is 
our  heritage  from  Ancient  Rome  and  our  Germanic  forbears  with- 
out taint  of  subjection  to  anything  but  the  pressure  of  Mother 
Nature  herself.  It  is  this  spirit  at  the  bottom  that  has  enabled  the 
people  to  carry  on  their  long  and  persistent  struggle  against  envi- 
ronment. Such  a  struggle  is  never  a  matter  of  an  emeute.  The 
short  and  sharp  shock  that  sometimes  takes  place  at  the  end  is 
really  the  culmination  of  centuries  of  silent  effort  in  which  the 
people  have  never  lost  sight  of  their  rights.  The  fight  over  insti- 
tutions in  the  Italian  cities  lasted  for  centuries  before  the  Com- 
munes were  triumphant.  They  flowered  too  early  and  the  condi- 
tions of  the  age  were  not  such  as  to  permit  their  continuance,  but 
the  length  of  the  struggle  and  the  former  glory  of  the  people 
remained  stamped  on  their  minds.  The  precedent  of  the  past  was 
always  before  their  eyes  to  guide  and  to  justify  future  efforts. 
And  they  owed  much  to  the  men  sprung  from  their  own  loins. 
Men  who  appealed  directly  to  the  minds  of  the  people.  When 
Cervantes  directed  his  kindly  ridicule  against  the  past  he  not  only- 
swept  the  ground  from  under  the  old  conditions  but  he  brought  into 
disrepute  its  living  descendants.  "  Don  Quixote  "  was  a  firebrand. 
It  was  quickly  translated  into  French  and  English.  Italy  and  Ger- 
many were  closely  connected  with  Spain.  The  influence  of  the 


150  SAKURAMBO 

book  was  simply  immense,  for  how  could  men  appeal  to  the  com- 
mon sense  of  an  age  so  unmercifully  laughed  out  of  existence. 
To  tell  the  truth  it  was  nothing  but  our  ancestor  worship  that  saved 
it,  and  of  this  Cervantes  left  nothing  but  the  shell.  We  have  had 
to  get  a  long  way  off  from  that  age,  and  it  was  not  until  the  middle 
of  the  nineteenth  century  that  we  again  dared  to  rear  a  pedestal 
to  medisevalism  and  the  Age  of  Chivalry.  The  writers  of  the 
seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries  devote  themselves  almost 
entirely  to  picturing  the  life  of  their  own  times.  And  very  glad 
are  we  that  they  have  clone  so.  Japan,  unfortunately  for  her,  had 
no  Cervantes  to  point  the  finger  of  derisive  praise  at  the  unwieldy 
figure  of  her  Samurai,  their  exaggerated  etiquette,  their  question- 
able motives,  their  lack  of  connection  with  reality,  the  incongruity 
of  their  position  in  such  times  of  absolute  peace;  in  plain  terms, 
no  one  to  show  how  artificial  and  unnatural  was  the  whole  existing 
system.  Japanese  writers  seem  to  think  that  in  1853  affairs  were 
approaching  a  climax  even  in  Japan.  Whether  a  truly  popular 
revolution  was  possible  at  that  date  is  perhaps  a  matter  of  doubt, 
but  that  the  system  hurt  and  hurt  outrageously  of  that  there  is  no 
doubt.  We  cannot  close  this  lengthy  chapter  better  than  by  repeat- 
ing the  quotation  we  have  placed  at  the  head  of  it;  "  and  then, 
believe  me,  pain  is  a  great  regenerator  of  man;  and  in  certain 
cases  is  a  comforting  indication  of  moral  vitality,  for  where  there 
is  not  pain,  there  is  gangrene." 


THROUGH  KOTSUKE 

"  Per  la  sua  bocca  non  parlerebbe  il  furor  d'un  dio  presente  nel  tri- 
podo  ma  si  bene  il  genio  delle  stirpi  custode  funereo  d'innumerevoli 
destini  gia  compiuti." 

— Romansi  del  Giglio. 

We  have  been  having  a  little  domestic  comedy  to  add  to  the 
gaiety  of  the  nations  assembled  at  one  of  the  tutelary  shrines  more 
particularly  devoted  to  the  needs  of  foreigners  at  Nikko.  An 
American  mother  of  overpowering  proportions  and  authority,  evi- 
dently much  impressed  by  the  attractions  of  Japanese  girls  and 
much  alarmed  for  the  virtue  of  her  two  sons — aged  eighteen  or 
twenty  or  thereabouts — marched  on  Nikko.  Well  did  she  keep 
her  eyes  (in  daytime)  on  those  boys.  When  the  army  marched 
she  was  the  rearguard  and  all  defiled  in  front  of  her.  The  boys 
did  not  care  to  look  at  Ncsan  who  regarded  the  operations  of 
Madame  with  wonder,  not  understanding  her  manoeuvring,  and 
seeing  "  men  "  treated  like  children.  All  this  in  daytime.  Alas! 
as  the  shades  of  night  fell  and  dinner  was  a  thing  of  the  past,  as 
the  evening  progressed  evening  dress  disappeared,  and  two  youthful 
but  manly  figures  disguised  in  flannels  disappeared  around  the 
corner  of  the  hotel — villageward.  Mother  sent  the  boys  to  bed  in 
due  season,  but  I  fear  they  lost  their  wray.  At  all  events  they 
managed  to  scrape  up  a  very  tolerable  acquaintance  with  half  the 
geisha  in  the  place.  The  boys  were  really  good  company  and  took 
their  mother's  hectoring  in  good  part,  and  without  observance 
beyond  the  bounds  of  good  sense. 

Xow  this  good  lady  doubtless  had  heard  or  read  some  travel- 
ler's tales  which  are  better  put  down  as  springing  from  misconcep- 
tion rather  than  exaggeration.  That  is,  they  have  described  the 
facts  that  came  under  their  observation  without  taking  the  trouble 

151 


152  SAKURAMBO 

to  go  much  into  their  real  relation  to  the  public  life.  The  Japanese 
themselves  are  partly  to  blame  for  the  wholesale  idea  foreigners 
get  as  to  the  virtue  of  Japanese  women.  There  is  no  doubt  about 
it  that  women  do  not  hold  the  position  in  men's  minds  that  they 
do  in  the  West.  At  bottom,  no  matter  how  much  respect  and 
affection  a  man  may  have  for  his  womenkind,  his  ground  work  is 
the  idea  of  woman  as  a  breeding  machine.  The  western  idea  of 
woman  as  man's  companion  never  occurs  to  him,  except  as  subsid- 
iary to  the  first  basic  principle  on  which  to  him  rests  the  relations 
of  the  sexes.  Hence  up  to  the  establishment  of  the  new  Civil 
Code  concubinage  had  a  regular  standing,  and  while  not  recognized 
by  that  Code  it  has  a  practical  standing  to-day.  Now  to  this 
lowered  ideal  of  woman  is  to  be  added  the  fact  that  in  daily  life 
less  mystery  is  thrown  about  her  person.  Climate  and  life  in  the 
Japanese  home  do  not  conduce  to  that  ultra-development  of  privacy 
so  conspicuous  a  feature  in  western  home  life.  Not  that  the  Jap- 
anese woman  is  a  whit  less  pure  and  modest  thereby  than  her 
western  sisters;  but  there  is  a  difference  of  standard  in  reference 
to  acts  of  necessity,  particularly  in  conversation,  and  to  which  free- 
dom of  reference  being  accustomed  from  childhood  she  sees  no 
offence  in  its  due  place.  Again,  the  Japanese  marries  very  early  in 
life,  and  marriage  to  him  is  by  no  means  the  formality  it  is  in  the 
West.  He  is  not  restricted  in  his  relations  to  other  women  as  in 
the  West,  where  the  contract  is  supposed  to  imply  chastity  on  the 
part  of  both  man  and  woman  in  their  future  married  life.  This  is 
only  implied  on  the  woman's  part  and  lapses  from  it  among  Jap- 
anese married  women  are  rare.  Also,  the  Japanese  have  carried 
on  from  their  ancient  system  the  custom  of  licensing  public  women. 
This  system,  while  akin  to  certain  systems  in  force  in  Europe  for 
the  regulation  of  vice  only,  carries  the  resemblance  on  the  surface. 
Where  women  were  so  severely  guarded  and  had  no  public  rights 
or  means  of  support  outside  the  family,  it  is  not  hard  to  see  that 
she  could  not  be  held  responsible  for  lapses  from  virtue  of  which 
there  was  but  little  opportunity.  Lapses  of  virtue  in  the  wife,  who 
was  the  only  woman  with  any  degree  of  freedom,  were  punishable 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  153 

with  death,  and  the  husband  could  take  the  law  in  his  own  hands. 
The  girls,  therefore,  that  filled — and  fill — the  brothels  of  the 
Yoshiwara  and  the  pleasure  quarters  of  the  large  towns  were  not 
women  who  had  made  a  "  mistake,"  or  women  of  depraved  moral 
character,  but  mainly  were  women  whose  means  of  support  had 
failed  them  or  their  families,  and  whose  only  resource  was  to  sell 
themselves  to  a  life  of  shame.  It  takes  courage  to  take  the  only 
other  remedy  left  to  them — suicide — but  many  did,  and  do  to-day, 
take  that  course  in  preference.  Where  the  relief  of  necessitous 
parents  is  concerned  such  course  would  not  be  open,  for  the  first 
duty  is  to  their  parents,  no  matter  at  what  cost,  and  many  a  romance 
has  been  woven  around  the  Yoshiwara  in  this  connection.  Unfor- 
tunately the  excuse  of  such  necessity  is  often  to  keep  some  miser- 
able old  man  in  his  daily  allowance  of  "  rum."  The  consent  of  the 
girl  is  supposed  to  be  obtained  before  they  enter  on  such  a  life, 
but  they  are  sold  as  a  rule  very  young,  at  sixteen  or  seventeen,  and 
the  value  of  the  implied  consent  in  such  cases  does  not  amount  to 
much.  Advantage  is  often  taken  of  the  Imperial  Order  allowing 
them  to  abandon  all  such  contracts  at  pleasure,  but  the  Courts  have 
thrown  safeguards  around  the  brothel-keeper,  holding  the  girl  still 
liable  for  the  money  loaned.  As  she  has  no  other  means  of  paying, 
and  the  brothel-keeper  can  come  down  on  her  parents,  the  result 
can  be  imagined.  There  is  also  a  police  regulation  that  the  brothel- 
keeper  must  sign  the  release,  and  although  presumably  he  can  be 
forced  to  do  so,  he  can  put  obstacles  in  the  way  and  gain  time  to 
bring  every  kind  of  pressure  on  the  girl.  It  is  hardly  necessary  to 
say  that  the  women  found  in  the  Japanese  brothels  are  a  very  differ- 
ent class  from  the  tough,  drunken,  and  obscure  creature  that  plays 
the  same  role  in  Europe  and  America.  The  lord  naturally  has  no 
credit  even  in  Japan,  their  lives  being  passed  amid  degrading  influ- 
ences, but  the  veil  of  charity  is  thrown  over  them  by  pity  for  the 
motives  which  lead  many  of  them  to  such  a  life.  Where  her 
motives  are  respected,  and  where  she  is  carefully  protected  against 
the  vices  of  a  licentious  life,  particularly  drunkenness — for  the 
police  supervision  of  the  brothel-keeper  is  severe  on  such  points — • 


154  SAKURAMBO 

she  can  retain  much  of  the  charm  of  her  womanhood,  her  grace  and 
gentleness  of  manner.  An  exception  is  to  be  made  in  reference 
to  the  former  treaty  ports.  If  the  prostitute  of  the  western  stamp 
is  found  anywhere  in  Japan  it  is  in  those  ports  and  in  places  fre- 
quented by  Europeans.  It  is  a  curious  fact,  and  the  reverse  of 
"  complimentary  "  to  the  advanced  intelligence  of  the  European, 
that  as  one  approaches  the  beaten  track  the  women  servants  give 
place  to  men  performing  the  offices  usually  turned  over  to  "  elder 
sister  "  (nesan).  Local  writers  handle  the  subject  rather  daintily, 
but  I  think  it  can  be  said  that  the  European  Japan  has  been  made 
so  by  the  European  himself.  Concubinage,  unfortunately  so  prev- 
alent, casts  a  shadow  over  the  Japanese  woman,  as  foreigners  get 
the  impression  that  unchastity  is  the  rule  and  not  the  exception,  and 
encounters  in  inns  and  gay  tea-houses  fosters  the  idea.  Vice  as  a 
rule  is  strictly  localized  by  the  police,  but  a  good  deal  must  be 
winked  at.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  the  accommodating  woman  found 
in  the  less  reputable  inns  is  not  one  of  the  inn  girls  at  all.  In 
Japan,  as  elsewhere,  the  line  is  drawn  hard  and  fast  and  those  who 
do  not  seek  the  girl  of  easy  access  do  not  have  her  thrust  upon 
them,  but  when  they  do  seek  her  a  licensed  woman  is  readily 
obtained  to  meet  the  demand.  Many  women  are  so  licensed  or  are 
connected  with  tea-houses  in  places  too  small  to  make  worth  while 
to  maintain  an  official  pleasure  quarter.  It  is  not  safe  to  judge 
Japanese  women  by  the  Yoshiwara  standpoint  or  the  tea-houses  of 
the  summer  and  health  resorts.  One  is  quite  likely  to  land  in 
serious  complications,  or  bag  and  baggage  in  the  street,  if  such 
preconceived  ideas  are  acted  on  elsewhere.  In  a  respectable  Jap- 
anese Yadoya,  and  at  the  tourist  resorts  to  which  foreign  residents 
and  their  wives  and  children  go  in  the  summer  season,  any  laxity  on 
the  part  of  nesan  if  known — and  they  always  hunt  in  couples — 
would  mean  instant  dismissal.  This  is  based  on  the  legal  licensing 
of  prostitution.  Any  house  or  hotel  in  which  it  is  illegally  prac- 
tised can  be  closed  for  two  months  on  simple  police  order.  Nesan 
is  a  capital  hand  at  a  bargain.  Her  parents  have  apprenticed  her 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  155 

for  a  term  of  years  to  the  hotel,  and  during  that  time  she  carefully 
regards  their  interests.     And  besides  she  is  a  good  little  girl. 

Nikko  is  a  charming  place  to  rusticate.  At  its  social  best 
in  August  and  early  September ;  its  physical  best  in  October  and 
early  November.  In  the  summer  it  is  very  rainy,  and  one  must 
acquire  web "  feet,  an  absolute  indifference  to  getting  soaked 
through,  and  a  stock  of  ancient  garments.  The  clouds  were  hang- 
ing over  Xantaisan  on  the  morning  when  I  started  for  Lake  Chu- 
zenji,  a  favourable  prognostic  according  to  the  local  weather 
sharps,  as  the  prolonged  wet  spells  usually  come  across  the  range 
which  lies  seaward.  From  preference  I  took  the  upper  road  as  far 
as  the  Dainichido  garden,  passing  over  the  site  of  what  was  once 
one  of  the  prettiest  spots  in  Nikko.  There  is  still  some  beauty  in 
it.  especially  when  the  azalea  is  in  blossom  in  early  July.  Among 
the  many  disastrous  rises  of  the  Daiyagawa  that  of  1902  was  one 
of  the  worst.  It  had  been  raining  for  days  and  the  Lake  was 
sending  a  cataract  over  the  Kegon  fall.  A  great  landslip  from 
Nantaisan  sent  a  tidal  wave  down  the  valley,  sweeping  away  every- 
thing in  its  path.  The  Dainichido,  situated  on  the  brink  of  the 
river  near  Nikko,  was  devastated,  only  one  of  the  little  temple 
buildings  escaped :  but  farther  down,  houses  were  swept  away  and 
the  inmates  with  them.  The  quaint  little  Buddhas  of  Gamman-ga- 
fuchi  were  terribly  banged  about  and  the  sacred  bridge  went  down 
under  the  flood  of  waters  carrying  away  everything  below  by  the 
impact  of  its  heavy  timbers.  This  lower  road  along  the  river 
always  goes  to  pieces  during  these  freshets,  and  is  always  patched 
up  again  in  the  same  spot  to  have  the  experience  repeated.  Why 
the  upper  road  is  not  developed  on  the  fairly  level  ground  there 
afforded  is  one  of  the  mysteries  of  the  local  engineering  corps. 
This  part  of  the  river  valley  while  pretty  is  decidedly  common- 
place. It  is  not  until  the  Ashio  road  is  left  behind  at  Futamiya 
and  we  advance  up  the  gorge  that  the  scenery  becomes  striking. 
Most  pedestrians  take  to  the  short  cuts  on  their  way  up  the  moun- 
tain. This  I  think  is  a  mistake,  for  all  the  fine  views  down  the 
valley  and  the  towering  mass  of  Nantaisan  on  the  right  are  missed. 


156  SAKURAMBO 

Just  before  reaching  Naka-nochaya,  the  view  is  obtained  of  the 
great  cleft  reaching  almost  from  the  summit  of  the  mountain  to 
the  bed  of  the  Daiyagawa,  and  is  well  worth  the  long  curves  of 
the  ricksha  road.  The  change  to  the  level  of  the  little  plateau 
lying  between  Nantaisan  and  the  head  of  the  lake  is  very  sudden, 
and  all  sense  of  being  in  the  wilderness  of  the  Japanese  central 
mountain  range  is  cut  off  and  one  could  well  imagine  oneself  taking 
a  woodland  walk  on  the  plains  below  so  thoroughly  are  the  sur- 
rounding slopes  screened  by  the  trees.  If  one  walks  a  hundred 
feet  back  of  the  Kegon  tea-house  a  fine  view  is  obtained  down  the 
valley  we  have  been  climbing  for  the  past  few  hours.  This  is  a 
magnificent  splash  of  gold,  yellow,  and  red,  in  early  October  when 
the  trees  of  the  higher  elevations  take  on  their  autumn  tints.  A 
good  deal  of  this  is  due,  not  to  the  trees  but  to  a  creeper  very 
common  all  through  these  woods  and  which  takes  a  fine  red  colour. 
Modern  times  have  sadly  stripped  the  gods  of  their  powers. 
Among  the  numbers  of  people  we  have  passed  or  who  have  passed 
us  on  the  mountain  there  are  a  goodly  proportion  of  women. 
Some  tramping  sturdily  along,  for  the  Japanese  woman  is  no  mean 
pedestrian.  Others  carried  in  kago,  the  favourite  means  of  con- 
veyance of  the  native  among  the  mountains  even  when  ricksha  is 
available.  Now  Nantaisan  is  a  very  holy  mountain.  Most  moun- 
tains are  holy  in  Japan,  and  this  Futaara  shrine  one  of  the  holiest. 
Up  to  very  recent  times  women  were  forbidden  to  climb  the  moun- 
tain, and  they  could  only  view  it  from  the  level  of  the  lake,  a 
proceeding  which  most  of  them  are  very  sensibly  satisfied  to  do 
even  at  this  date.  There  is  no  royal  road  to  Nantaisan,  which  is 
regarded  as  a  most  fatiguing  climb  from  the  steepness  of  the  path 
and  the  great  number  of  steps  making  the  grade  still  more  severe. 
In  ancient  times  we  could  believe  the  prohibition  still  more  rigorous 
and  their  presence  even  on  this  lower  slope  of  the  mountain  not 
admitted.  That  is,  if  we  can  believe  the  following  veracious 
legend.  Many,  many  years  ago,  a  little  nun  belonging  to  the 
Futaara  shrine  at  Nikko  made  up  her  mind  possibly  that  since  so 
many  men  found  something  to  see  on  the  slopes  of  Nantaisan  there 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  157 

must  be  something  there  she  would  like  to  see  too ;  and  perhaps  find 
out  by  a  personal  interview  whether  the  god  to  whom  she  had 
devoted  her  services  was  really  such  a  woman-hater  as  he  had  the 
reputation  of  being,  or  whether  the  prohibition  laid  on  her  sex  was 
simply  another  device  of  selfish  man  to  keep  the  key  of  the  closet  of 
good  things  to  himself.  A  view  doubtless  supported  by  the  gay  life 
of  her  ecclesiastical  superiors  of  those  early  days  and  going  on 
under  her  own  eyes.  At  all  events,  tucking  up  her  kimono  care- 
fully out  of  dust's  way  until  only  the  red  underskirt  formed  her 
outer  conspicuous  garment,  and  with  her  broad  pilgrim's  hat  and 
a  staff  she  started  on  her  long  climb.  Intentions  doubtless  count 
for  much — faith  as  well  as  works.  Our  little  nun  was  a  kagura 
dancer — one  of  the  sacred  temple  dances  is  called  by  that  name — 
but  while  her  little  feet  were  skilled  in  the  sacred  measure  they  had 
had  little  practice  in  walking.  In  time,  therefore,  she  grew  very 
tired,  and  when  she  had  climbed  the  mountain  and  reached  the  spot 
just  opposite  where  now  the  bridge  crosses  to  the  Lakeside  Hotel 
at  Chuzenji  she  stopped  to  rest.  Here  was  the  god's  chance  to 
punish  this  outrageous  intrusion  on  his  shrine.  At  once  she  was 
turned  to  stone,  and  there  she  sits  yet,  a  plain  and  palpable  proof 
of  the  legend,  safe  from  storm  and  rain,  and  ensured  an  eternity 
of  fame  far  beyond  the  ephemeral  existence  of  Lot's  wife.  The 
proof  of  the  legend  is  certainly  ad  hominem.  There  the  maiden 
is,  and  the  only  thing  that  carping  critics  could  bring  against  the 
veracity  of  the  tale  is  the  fact  that  the  village  is  supposed  to  have 
existed  and  prospered  some  eleven  hundred  years  nowr,  and  even  in 
Japan  a  village  cannot  exist  and  prosper  for  a  much  shorter  time 
without  the  due  proportion  of  the  fair  sex. 

Let  us  try  to  get  some  idea  as  to  what  this  religion  is  that  has 
led  our  little  nun  to  take  such  fearful  risks  involving  her  undoing. 
It  is  no  easy  matter  to  get  at  just  what  is  the  condition  of  the  Jap- 
anese mind  regarding  religion.  Every  religionist  colours  his  views 
according  to  the  cult  that  he  professes.  If  you  are  to  believe  the 
Buddhist,  then  the  supremacy  of  the  creed  of  Shaka  Muni  is 
unquestioned.  \Yith  no  little  reason  they  point  to  the  many 


158  SAKURAMBO 

temples  sprinkled  over  the  land,  and  to  the  priests  engaged  in  their 
service.  To  them  there  is  no  cause  to  bestir  themselves.  Their 
opponents  on  the  contrary,  especially  Christian,  say  that  Buddhism 
is  a  dead  creed  in  the  country;  that  it  has  remained  behind  with 
the  ideals  of  the  past ;  that  it  has  not  kept  pace  with  the  expanding 
of  the  Japanese  mind;  that  it  has  no  real  life  and  only  needs  a 
push  to  send  the  whole  structure  to  the  ground.  In  the  early  part 
of  the  eighteenth  century  much  was  heard  of  Shinto,  the  original 
cult  of  the  nation  and  which  had  dropped  into  oblivion  before  the 
effective  organization  of  the  Buddhist  propaganda.  There  is  but 
little  argument  as  to  Shinto  now7.  Its  polemics  have  dropped  out  of 
sight.  But  this  mainly  because  Shinto  as  the  national  cult  has 
triumphed.  There  wras  no  contest  of  supremacy  in  the  nation  at 
large.  Some  commentators  in  studying  the  ancient  books  chose 
to  ask  the  question  does  Shinto  still  live  in  the  hearts  of  the  Jap- 
anese people,  and  the  answer  was  unanimous,  for  it  was  not  so 
much  a  question  of  religion  as  a  question  of  national  identity  and 
once  understood  the  answer  was  a  foregone  conclusion.  Now 
Shinto  in  one  sense  is  Nature  Worship.  There  are  gods  without 
end,  enough  to  cover  all  the  phenomena  that  has  come  or  is  likely 
to  come  to  man's  knowledge  in  the  future.  Whether  eight  hun- 
dred or  eighty  or  eight  myriads  of  them  is  a  matter  of  little  im- 
portance, for  the  term  "  myriad  "  is  very  elastic  and  they  are 
always  growing.  But  the  important  point  is  that  the  basis  of  the 
system  is  Ancestor  Worship.  All  these  gods  and  goddesses  are 
directly  connected  with  the  genealogy  of  the  Mikados.  This  is  so 
much  the  case  that  one  is  somewhat  led  to  doubt  whether  there  has 
ever  been  a  genuine  nature  worship  in  Japan,  entirely  free  and 
independent  of  this  Ancestor  Cult.  The  cut-and-dried  genealogies 
however  of  the  Kojiki  and  Nihongi  are  so  obviously  a  compilation 
made  for  effect  that  one  can  just  as  well  attribute  their  nature  to  a 
readjustment  of  an  old  nature  worship  lost  in  the  mists  of  time  as 
to  take  the  ground  above  that  Nature  Worship  has  sprung  from 
Ancestor  Worship.  Whichever  way  it  is  we  have  at  the  dawn  of 
history  a  cult  which  embodies  both  elements  but  of  which  the 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  159 

Ancestor  element  has  taken  the  predominant  position.  To  the 
Chief  of  the  Nation  is  attributed  a  divine  ancestry,  and  an  elaborate 
genealogy  has  been  worked  out  which  is  made  the  basis  of  the  body, 
politic  and  religious.  But  the  deification  by  no  means  stops  there. 
As  the  Chief  of  the  Nation  rules  by  right  divine  so  the  chiefs  of 
the  tribes  are  of  divine  origin,  younger  cadet  branches  of  the 
Imperial  house.  The  same  allegiance  that  is  owed  by  all  to  the 
head  of  the  nation  is  owed  by  the  tribe  to  its  individual  head.  It 
is  to  the  deification  of  these  chiefs  after  death  that  most  authorities 
attribute  the  origin  of  the  local  gods,  the  Uji-no-k:.mi,  and  the 
centre  of  the  tribal  worship  was  the  temple  raised  in  honour  of 
the  common  ancestor,  and  probably  at  the  time  its  worship  was 
confined  entirely  to  the  members  of  the  tribe.  In  fact,  at  that 
time  habitat  was  very  restricted  and  the  dwellers  in  a  district  were 
related  by  ties  of  blood,  a  condition  of  affairs  moreover  which  in 
some  places  has  lasted  down  to  the  present  day.  In  course  of 
time  there  was  change.  With  the  development  of  a  feudal  system 
in  place  of  a  family  system  fiefs  were  often  changed  and  chiefs 
removed  to  distant  parts  of  the  country.  Great  care  was  taken  to 
maintain  the  cult  of  the  Uji-no-kami  which  had  now  become  the 
local  divinity,  and  w7hose  worship  now  included  many  not  connected 
in  any  way  as  members  of  the  tribe.  The  last  stage  was  when  the 
Uji-no-kami  became  confounded  with  or  merged  into  a  local 
Nature  God,  always  be  it  remembered  retaining  as  basis  his  right 
to  worship  as  an  Ancestor  and  so  confounding  the  two  forms  of 
belief — Nature  and  Ancestor  Worship — as  to  prevent  the  develop- 
ment of  any  idea  of  a  god  as  apart  from  the  ancestral  cult. 

Now  in  ancestor  worship  the  most  important  feature  is  the 
maintenance  of  the  family  line,  the  necessity  of  an  heir  male  to 
continue  the  family  worship.  Woman  has  always  been  excluded 
from  exercising  the  higher  religious  rites  of  the  cult.  Also  she  has 
been  regarded  practically  as  a  chattel.  When  she  leaves  the  house 
to  go  to  her  husband  she  also  leaves  the  family  to  become  a 
member  of  her  husband's  family.  Only  under  certain  circumstances 
does  she  play  any  part  in  relation  to  the  family  worship  and  that 


160  SAKURAMBO 

is  when  through  lack  of  heirs  male  a  stranger  is  adopted  into  the 
family  for  the  purpose  of  marriage  so  that  her  issue  may  continue 
the  blood  line  in  the  worship  of  the  ancestor.  Every  Japanese 
house  has  the  kamidana  or  god  shelf  where  the  mortuary  tablets  of 
the  family  ancestor  are  placed  and  before  which  offerings  are  made. 
This  in  itself  would  be  evidence  that  the  basis  of  the  Japanese 
system  is  Shinto.  Many  Japanese  are  Buddhists.  All  are  Shinto- 
ists.  It  is  not  so  much  a  belief  in  dogmas — for  Shinto  dogmas 
may  be  said  to  be  non-existent  they  are  so  very  shadowy — as  a  sym- 
bolic representation  of  the  unity  of  the  race,  and  it  is  as  such  that  it 
has  such  strong  hold  to-day  on  all  classes  of  Japanese.  The  intense 
earnestness  of  this  religious  feeling  among  the  Japanese  does  not 
seem  to  have  attracted  the  attention  it  really  deserves,  although  the 
evidence  of  it  is  continually  under  one's  eyes.  This  is  to  some  ex- 
tent due  to  the  relationship  existing  between  the  worshipper  and  the 
God.  He  is  the  god  of  the  race,  not  a  universal  god.  There  is  just 
as  much  fierce  pride  of  possession  in  the  gods  as  in  the  old 
exclusive  cult  of  Jehovah  among  the  Israelites  of  old,  a  race  by 
the  way  to  which  the  Japanese  have  no  little  resemblance.  The 
Japanese  god,  however,  is  not  a  being  apart  from  and  above  all 
mankind.  To  them  the  universe  is  Japan,  and  they  have  never 
extended  their  cult  to  take  in  a  wider  range  than  it  did  in  the  times 
when  the  race  first  appears  in  history.  The  Japanese  therefore 
approaches  his  god  as  in  times  past  he  approached  his  chief,  humbly 
and  reverentially  but  with  a  feeling  of  the  blood  tie  that  exists 
between  them,  and  that  he  feels  most  intensely.  Mr.  Lowell,  in 
his  "  Occult  Japan,"  has  described  their  "  hypnotic  possession  "  of 
which  the  race  make  such  a  practice,  and  the  very  extent  of  which 
is  the  best  of  evidence  as  to  their  intensity  of  feeling.  As  a  Jap- 
anese writer  has  described  it,  they  always  feel  the  presence  of  the 
kami.  They  are  as  much  a  part  of  the  land  as  the  living  and 
surround  the  living  on  every  side,  entering  into  all  their  pleasures 
and  griefs.  So  much  for  the  daily  practice  of  religion;  but  for 
the  future  they  turn  to  the  developed  Buddhistic  philosophy. 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  161 

Here  they  have  something  far  more  tangible  to  grasp  than  anything 
that  Shinto  can  give  them. 

From  the  very  earliest  days  the  importance  of  worship  has 
been  emphasized  by  Imperial  edicts.  Shinto  to-day  is  the  State 
religion  and  thoroughly  believed  by  the  great  mass  of  Japanese 
who,  it  is  safe  to  say,  are  as  confident  that  their  ancestors  were 
present  at  the  Battle  of  Tsushima  to  encourage  their  descendants 
and  throw  confusion  and  terror  into  the  hearts  of  the  enemy,  as 
when  the  Tartar  horde  of  former  days  descended  on  the  shores  in 
the  days  of  Ho  jo  Tokimune.  But  we  ourselves  worship  our  ances- 
tors. We  are  as  much  concerned  to-day  to  uphold  the  name  they 
have  handed  down  to  us  as  if  we  had  invested  them  with  all  the 
attributes  of  the  Japanese  Kami,  and  among  the  upper  classes  of  the 
western  world  it  is  far  more  fear  of  disgrace  brought  on  the  family 
name  than  fear  of  religion  that  upholds  the  social  code.  Some 
old  moss-covered  blurred  slabs  have  more  influence  than  the  church 
under  whose  shadow  they  rest.  An  ancestor  worship,  properly 
speaking,  is  pride  of  race.  The  intolerance  of  race  is  well  known, 
and  the  long  seclusion  of  the  Japanese  have  intensified  racial  feeling 
among  them  to  an  extent  that  western  Utopianism  with  its  brother- 
hood of  man — and  which  we  sometimes  hear  expressed  among 
Japanese — will  never  break  down.  They  are  a  peculiar  people, 
made  so  by  their  physical  and  political  isolation;  just  as  the 
Hebrew  of  old,  made  so  by  his  religious  isolation.  There  is  an 
interesting  feature  in  the  rituals  used  by  the  Shinto  priests.  As 
in  so  many  religions,  they  have  become  unintelligible  with  the  lapse 
of  time.  Of  course  once  they  had  a  meaning,  but  much  of  it  is  lost, 
even  to  the  priest  who  recites  it  much  as  many  an  ignorant  monk 
of  the  middle  ages  mumbled  his  Latin  prayers.  The  latter,  how- 
ever, always  admitted  of  an  interpretation  elsewhere,  if  the  Frere 
Gorenflot  of  the  occasion  could  not  master  its  meaning.  The 
Shinto  formula,  however,  often  only  admits  of  endless  controversy, 
the  choice  of  whose  interpretations  is  a  matter  for  the  commentators. 
There  is  another  form  of  Japanese  religious  feeling  among  the 
lower  classes,  and  that  is  the  grossest  superstitions.  NrtfHng  of 


162  SAKURAMBO 

importance  is  done  without  the  interposition  of  the  priest  who  deals 
in  charms  of  all  kinds,  whether  to  catch  a  thief  or  a  husband,  for 
defence  against  disease  or  against  a  ghost.  Charm  books  and 
almanacs  govern  the  course  of  any  undertaking,  and  unlucky  days 
therein  marked  are  carefully  avoided.  Shinto  has  built  up  an  inter- 
esting folklore  around  it.  It  is  childish  and  crude  compared  to 
the  folklore  of  the  West.  For  instance,  Jason  and  the  Golden 
Fleece  and  the  beautiful  myths  found  all  through  Homer.  It  deals 
much  with  wonderfully  strong  children  found  in  unusual  places, 
of  strange  transformations  of  spirits  good  and  evil  into  human 
shape,  and  the  number  of  ghost  stories  are  uncomfortably  large. 
The  Japanese  child  gets  his  fill  of  0  Bake  Mono  San  (Honourable 
Mr.  Ghost).  The  fox  among  animals  especially  fills  an  unpleasant 
role  in  his  pranks  and  "  possessions."  They  are  reticent  about  it, 
and  it  takes  some  little  time  to  find  out  that  many  of  the  lower 
classes  (particularly  women)  avoid  the  Yokohama  Koyenchi 
(park)  on  account  of  a  fox  which  is  supposed  to  haunt  it  at  night. 
Whether  one  leaves  the  Lakeside  Hotel  by  the  pretty  shaded 
road  which  follows  all  the  windings  of  the  lake  or  pushes  on  by 
boat  to  Shobu  no  hama  near  the  upper  end,  the  first  striking  feature 
to  meet  the  eye  is  the  scarred  track  of  the  great  landslide  of  1902. 
This  stretches  from  just  below  the  upper  third  of  the  mountain  to 
the  base,  spreading  out  fan-shaped  to  a  width  of  over  a  hundred 
yards.  The  temple  buildings  stood  in  the  track  of  the  slide  and 
were  crushed  and  buried  beneath  it.  There  was  warning  of  the 
danger  and  there  does  not  seem  to  have  been  loss  of  life,  although 
the  native  on  that  point  wavered  somewhat  between  plain  igno- 
rance and  the  wish  to  adorn  a  tale.  The  uncertainty  left  in  the  mind 
is  somewhat  akin  to  that  of  the  elder  Mr.  Weller  after  his  upset 
in  driving  down  to  Eatanswill.  He  found  the  old  gentleman's  hat, 
but  was  uncertain  whether  or  not  the  owner's  head  was  in  it. 
This  experience  with  the  mountain,  however,  has  been  taken  as  a 
warning,  and  advisedly  if  the  palpable  signs  of  landslip  seen  else- 
where are  any  indication  of  the  frequency  of  this  occurrence.  The 
temple  has  been  rebuilt  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  lake  and 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  163 

standing  on  the  shore  under  its  torii  is  had  one  of  the  finest  views 
of  Nantaisan  across  the  water  that  can  be  had  anywhere  on  the 
circumference  of  the  mountain.  A  Japanese  temple  usually  implies 
a  view.  This  is  so  much  the  case  that  the  temple  forms  part  of  the 
mise  en  scene,  and  the  exquisite  harmony  between  it  and  its 
surroundings  arouse  the  admiration  of  everyone  who  visits  this 
eastern  land.  Now  we  can  admit  the  genius  to  which  its  develop- 
ment is  second  nature,  but  after  all  scenery  is  not  architecture 
and  taking  the  temple  out  of  its  environment  the  result  is  disastrous. 
The  origin  of  Japanese  temple  architecture  is  referred  by  competent 
authorities  to  the  native  hut  or  house,  its  main  features  being 
economy  of  space  and  beauty  in  the  curved  lines  of  the  roof.  As  it 
was  nearly  fourteen  hundred  years  ago,  so  it  is  to-day,  with  little 
change  except  as  to  the  decoration  with  which  Buddhism  in  some 
cases  has  loaded  it.  Now  it  is  the  idea  that  is  back  of  the  temple 
that  influences  its  development,  and  it  has  been  the  Japanese  idea 
of  these  Kami,  of  these  forefathers  of  the  race,  the  domesticity  of 
their  cult,  that  has  directed  its  external  form.  Their  gods  are  their 
kinsmen,  the  most  recent  of  these  hardly  being  any  more  removed 
from  those  of  the  race  now  walking  the  earth  than  the  freshest 
canonization  emanating  from  Rome.  We  have  no  record  of  such 
an  influence  in  our  Aryan  mythologies.  Traces  there  are  indeed 
of  ancestor  worship  in  all  religions  and  they  are  found  in  the  my- 
thologies of  Greece  and  Rome,  and  in  the  latter  influence  private 
worship  down  to  the  latest  days  of  the  Empire.  The  hosts  of 
heaven  are  peopled  with  progenitors  of  their  kings  and  heroes,  but 
such  members  of  the  celestial  hierarchy  play  always  a  subordinate 
part.  There  is  no  bond  between  the  great  gods  of  the  Indian,  the 
Assyrian,  the  Egyptian,  the  Greek,  and  the  Roman  mythology,  and 
their  worshippers.  They  are  beings  apart  entirely  from  the  human 
race.  Man  to  them  is  their  sport  and  plaything.  Hence,  even  if 
the  gods  were  endowed  with  many  of  the  malicious  frailties  of  men, 
and  of  which  men's  misfortunes  seemed  to  imply  the  existence,  the 
feeling  inspired  was  one  of  awe  and  fear,  and  such  feeling  wrould 
seek  expression  in  the  architecture  and  rites  of  the  temple  where 


164  SAKURAMBO 

such  gods  were  worshipped.  Placing  God  so  far  beyond  him  and 
outside  of  him,  the  religious  man  of  the  West  has  developed  a  cor- 
responding architecture,  as  far  in  advance  of  the  East  as  the  idea  of 
an  extra-human  God  is  in  advance  of  ancestor  worship.  And 
mark  that  it  is  the  idea  that  influences  here.  That  the  nearer  it 
approaches  to  unity,  the  greater  the  concentration  of  its  architec- 
tural development.  The  Greeks  worshipped  many  gods  it  is  true, 
but  in  the  grandest  age  of  Greece — the  age  of  Pericles — the  idea 
at  the  root  of  all  Greek  philosophy  was  the  unity  of  the  universe 
as  they  knew  it  and  of  which  they  were  seeking  an  expression. 

In  fact,  whenever  we  find  religion  based  on  that  idea  of  unity, 
a  religion  trying  to  seek  in  its  esoteric  expression  a  formula  to 
explain  that  universe  by  a  single  first  cause  we  find  a  great  temple 
architecture.  The  great  Assyrian  temples  of  Bel  and  Ishtar  at 
Nineveh  and  Babylon,  of  Isis  and  Osiris  at  Thebes  and  Memphis, 
the  Parthenon  at  Athens,  Jupiter  Capitolinus  at  Rome,  are  all  the 
expression  of  man's  idea  of  the  power  in  whose  hands  he  felt  lay 
his  fate.  The  position  of  Christianity  was  peculiar.  A  new 
development  of  an  old  religion  on  hostile  soil,  it  naturally  rejected 
the  architectural  form  of  that  religion.  In  some  ways  the  basilica 
— a  development  itself  of  the  Roman  house  with  its  atrium — has 
influenced  early  Christian  architecture,  but  it  soon  found  this  unsat- 
isfactory and  broke  into  its  own  lines.  These  were  to  some  extent 
modified  by  the  introduction  into  the  old  Hebrew  idea  of  Unity  of 
the  Godhead  of  the  mystic  idea  of  a  Trinity,  which,  with  the  devel- 
opment of  "  Mary  Worship  "  and  worship  of  the  Saints,  necessi- 
tated chapels  adjunct  to  the  main  church  and  radically  influenced 
the  architecture.  Therefore  Christian  architecture  has  never 
reached  the  beauty  of  the  Greek  ideal  which  after  all  was  essen- 
tially single  in  its  basis.  Temple  architecture  is  racial  just  as  the 
Church  is  racial,  and  in  so  far  as  the  western  mind  has  raised  the 
ideal  of  an  awful  omnipotent  first  cause  as  God,  and  sought  to 
express  that  awfulness  and  beauty  in  wood  and  stone,  so  it  has 
gone  beyond  those  nations  who  have  confined  their  speculations 
writhin  the  range  of  their  immediate  environment;  and  as  these 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  165 

always  lived  in  the  past,  made  the  past  their  ideal  to  which  the 
present  must  conform,  so  their  architecture  conforms  to  the  same 
primitive  belief.  This  tyranny  of  the  past  has  wrapped  the  Far 
East  in  swaddling  clothes.  After  the  first  enthusiasm  over  Buddh- 
ism had  worked  its  effect  the  land  sank  back  into  its  numbing 
sleep.  There  was  none  of  that  fermentation  of  ideas,  that  hetero- 
geneity to  which  the  West  owes  so  much.  Their  renaissance  of 
faith  was  of  the  nature  of  scholastic  disputes,  rather  than  such  as 
inspired  Europe  from  the  tenth  to  the  thirteenth  centuries  to  cover 
the  land  with  magnificent  cathedral  churches.  The  practice  of 
Christianity  in  requiring  frequent  worship  of  the  people  en  masse 
necessitated  the  presence  of  the  Church  as  near  the  centre  of  popu- 
lation as  possible,  and  which  can  account  for  the  fact  that  natural 
surroundings  do  not  play  the  prominent  part  that  it  does  in  the 
setting  of  the  Japanese  temples.  This  however  has  not  always 
been  the  case ;  in  many  western  countries  it  is  not  the  case  to-day, 
and  everybody  knows  the  care  and  thought  the  architect  is  expected 
to  give  to  the  question  of  making  the  best  use  of  environment.  In 
ancient  days  this  was  carried  to  a  great  extreme,  as  the  picturesque 
and  harmonious  surroundings  of  many  an  old  French  and  English 
Abbey  show.  It  would  be  a  bold  man  to  say  that  the  ruins  of 
Furness  or  Fountains  Abbey  in  England  were  out  of  harmony  with 
their  surroundings.  There  are  few  finer  scenes  than  the  latter  as 
viewed  from  the  distance.  Beauty  in  this  pile  is  not  dependent 
on  its  surroundings.  Milan  cathedral,  that  beautiful  monument  in 
white  marble  of  man's  devotion  to  an  idea,  would  be  quite  as 
harmonious  amid  a  setting  of  Nature  as  it  is  in,  the  streets  of  the 
great  city  which  lies  around  it  and  worships  in  it.  Exquisite  as  is 
the  decoration  of  the  Nikko  temples,  will  anyone  seriously  rate 
them  as  equal  to  the  Sistine  Chapel  or  the  Pope's  Apartments  in  the 
Vatican.  The  one  the  work  of  Michael  Angelo  Buonarotti,  the 
other  of  Raphael  Sanzio?  Is  there  any  music  to  be  found  in  the 
Japanese  liturgy  to  compare  to  that  poured  out  by  the  grand 
organs  of  Europe?  After  all  architecture  is  a  question  of  mathe- 
matics and  mechanics.  It  is  the  work  of  men's  hands,  and  one 


166  SAKURAMBO 

will  hardly  seriously  compare  the  Nikko  and  Hongwanji  temples 
with  the  Duomos  of  Milan  and  Florence,  of  Amiens,  Cologne, 
Burgos,  Toledo,  Lincoln,  or  Salisbury  most  graceful  of  English 
temples.  They  are  not  comparable.  Nikko  has  the  beauty  of  one 
of  the  jewel  boxes  of  Cellini ;  Milan,  Florence,  and  Rome,  possess 
not  only  the  beauty  of  Cellini  but  the  grandeur  of  Michael  Angelo. 
Japanese  religious  architecture  is  exactly  expressive  of  the  people 
themselves.  For  generations  their  ideal  has  been  limited  in  its 
general  outlines.  All  their  force  has  been  expended  on  the  elab- 
oration of  detail.  One  turns  away  from  Nikko  with  a  feeling  of 
dissatisfaction,  a  feeling  that  it  does  not  express  the  fulness  of  a 
great  idea  such  as  is  found  in  the  temple  architecture  of  India,  of 
'the  Moslem  races,  or  the  cathedrals  of  Europe.  As  a  mausoleum 
it  is  exquisite.  As  an  expression  of  faith,  infinitely  finite. 

As  we  push  a  little  further  on  into  the  lake  a  break  in  the 
mountains  is  seen  on  the  left.  This  is  the  Asagatatoge,  a  pass 
which  leads  across  to  Ashio  and  the  Akagi  range  of  which  more 
anon.  Suffice  it  to  say  here  that  a  very  indifferent  footpath  leads 
to  it  and  that  a  fifteen  minutes'  climb  to  the  top  gives  a  beautiful 
view,  particularly  on  the  lake  side.  The  path  on  the  other  side 
leads  down  to  Dozan  or  the  mining  town  at  Ashio.  Mining  towns 
are  usually  what  can  be  called  "  tough  "  and  Dozan  is  no  exception 
to  the  rule.  It  is  quite  refreshing  to  find  this  touch  of  universal 
nature.  It — and  some  few  other  things — reminds  us  that  our 
Japanese  hosts  are  part  of  the  human  race  after  all.  The  general 
term  of  address  elsewhere  in  Japan  to  the  foreigner  is  Jinsan,  which 
as  a  term  of  reproach  is  of  the  mildest  character.  Dozan,  how- 
ever, never  reaches  such  a  point  of  etiquette.  Jin  is  as  far  as  its 
higher  education  has  gone,  and  the  commoner  term  as  the  stranger 
wanders  along  its  long  and  dirty  street  is  ijin  and  tojin  or  ke-tojin, 
which  according  to  the  animus  of  the  speaker  can  be  translated 
"  barbarian/'  "  hairy  barbarian,"  or  "  foreign  pig."  The  plant 
of  the  copper  company  is  a  very  extensive  one.  Concentrators, 
smelters,  reverberatories,  tunnels  driven  in  every  direction  into 
the  bare  hillsides,  the  shriek  and  rattle  of  the  mine  trams,  the  hard, 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  167 

sullen  faces  of  the  people,  and  the  reign  of  absolute  ugliness  set 
Dozan  apart  as  a  mining  town.  Just  as  other  mining  towns  else- 
where bear  their  characteristic  marks.  Below  the  town  of  Ashio — 
the  secular  portion  of  the  settlement — is  the  filter  plant  to  filter  the 
mine  waters.  These  have  given  much  trouble  to  the  farmers  below 
who  have  sought  redress  from  the  Government  and  Diet  in  Tokyo, 
rather  than  by  damage  suits  or  injunctions  from  the  Courts,  a 
usual  procedure  in  the  West.  Filtration  has  been  adopted  as  the 
remedy.  The  agitation  was  carried  on  with  the  usual  exaggera- 
tion, there  being  no  particular  reason  to  believe  that  affairs  were 
worse  than  they  had  been  for  years,  the  sudden  cry  of  danger  to 
health  of  those  living  below  on  the  river  being  rather  specious. 
The  fact  that  no  effort  had  been  made,  however,  to  remedy  the 
evident  disadvantages  of  such  a  careless  system  as  running  the 
mine  waters  direct  into  the  river  seems  to  show  that  remedial 
legislation  in  such  directions  had  made  but  little  progress. 

At  Shobu-no-hama  our  road  leaves  Lake  Chuzenji  to  ascend 
some  seven  hundred  feet  to  the  level  of  the  moorland  of  Senjo-ga- 
hara.  Near  the  village  it  passes  through  a  pretty  piece  of  wood- 
land which  reminds  one  much  of  our  own  woodland  at  home.  The 
Ryuzu-ga-take  or  Dragon's  Head  Fall  is  a  beautiful  cascade.  This 
whole  district  is  subject  to  sudden  risings  during  the  heavy  rains 
of  August,  and  it  is  at  such  times  that  these  falls  are  at  their 
best.  In  early  October  this  place  is  a  blaze  of  red  and  yellow. 
The  Senjo-ga-hara  is  a  broad  valley  surrounded  by  mountains  and 
one  of  the  most  American  pieces  of  scenery  in  Japan.  There  is  but 
little  sign  of  native  life  and  one  feels  translated  to  a  scene  of  our 
western  country.  In  early  July  the  Shobu  or  Iris  dots  this  moor 
in  every  direction.  This  Shobu  is  not  to  be  confounded  with  the 
Shobu  of  Shobu-no-hama.  They  are  written  with  differing  ideo- 
graphs. And  as  thereby  hangs  a  tale,  perhaps  it  is  worth  telling. 
Many,  many  years  ago — mukashi,  zundo  noo-mukashi  ne,  as  the 
Japanese  say — the  God  of  Akagisan  who  had  been  casting  longing 
eyes  in  this  direction  determined  to  try  conclusions  with  Futarra- 
sama,  the  God  of  Nantaisan;  and  so  he  came  striding  across  the 


168  SAKURAMBO 

hills  and  kicking  a  dent  in  them  at  that  very  Asa-gata-toge,  which 
we  have  just  left  behind;  and  the  two  gods  met  on  this  Senjo-ga- 
hara  or  "  Moor  of  the  Battlefield."  Terrible  was  the  combat  and 
few  the  details  handed  down  to  gaping  mortals,  but  the  result  was 
that  Akagisama  fled  back  in  confusion  and  distress  over  the  hills, 
and  Futaarasama  to  show  his  joy  over  the  victory  established 
games  and  general  festivities  on  the  piece  of  flat  ground  near  the 
head  of  the  Lake,  whence  the  name  Shobu-no-hama  or  strand  of 
the  games.  To  this  day  once  a  year  the  priests  come  up  from 
Nikko  to  the  Temple  at  Chozenji,  and  early  in  the  morning  with 
full  canonicals  and  ritual  shoot  an  arrow  into  the  Lake  in  the 
direction  of  Akagisan  and  in  token  of  the  defiance  of  their  god. 
I  know  there  is  a  more  prosaic  explanation  which  attributes  the 
name  of  the  moor  to  a  battle  fought  between  partisans  of  the 
North  and  South  Empires  during  the  Ashikaga  Shogunate,  but 
why  should  men  seek  such  a  "  hole  and  corner  "  place  to  "  have 
to  do  "  with  each  other,  as  old  Mallory  says?  One  can  take  their 
choice — the  old  legend  of  the  battle  of  the  gods,  or  the  official  legend 
of  the  battle  of  the  men.  The  only  visible  sign  of  a  battle  is  a  long 
mound  rising  in  the  plain  to  the  left.  The  road  across  the  moor 
is  very  willingly  left  behind.  In  ordinary  bad  weather  it  is  a 
mudhole,  and  in  wet  weather  it  is  under  water.  At  such  times 
nolens  volens  one  must  abandon  "  Shank's  mare  "  for  a  more  suit- 
able conveyance.  On  the  other  side  of  the  moor  by  a  short  detoiir 
from  the  Yumoto  road  we  reach  the  prettiest  cascade  in  this  Nikko 
t  district.  The  Yu-no-taki  is,  properly  speaking,  that  rather  rare 
feature  a  waterslide.  Something  such  as  little  Jan  Ridd  staggered 
up  and  down  in  his  excursions  to  reach  the  Doone  valley,  and 
which  by  the  way  only  existed  in  Jan's  vivid  imagination.  It  is  the 
direct  outlet  of  Lake  Yumoto,  and  set  in  exquisite  green  plunges 
most  abruptly  from  the  sky,  so  to  speak.  One  gets  a  better  idea  of 
its  height — 200  feet — as  they  struggle  up  the  steep  path  beside  it 
to  rejoin  the  road  a  few  minutes  along  which  brings  one  into 
Yumoto.  The  road  winds  under  the  trees  along  the  picturesque 
little  lake  and  soon  opens  up  on  the  left  the  Konseitoge  leading 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  169 

across  to  Higashi  Ogawa  and  the  valley  of  the  Katashinagawa,  to 
Numata  and  Ikao.  Yumoto  is  a  very  isolated  primitive  little  place. 
Purely  and  simply  an  Onsen,  or  bathing  resort.  Many  foreigners 
resort  to  it  not  only  for  its  baths  but  for  the  beautiful  surround- 
ings, and  the  elevation  of  nearly  five  thousand  feet  ensures  cool- 
ness in  summer.  But  it  is  very  much  out  of  the  world. 

In  spite  of  its  walled-in  appearance  there  are  several  ways  of 
getting  out  of  Yumoto,  although  only  two  are  what  can  be  called 
popular.  One  road  we  have  just  come  over,  but  it  is  possible  to 
return  to  Xikko  by  the  trail  between'  Omanago  and  Nantaisan  and 
come  down  near  the  Jikwan  waterfall.  Again,  surmounting  the 
little  ridge  just  behind  the  village  to  the  north  a  pretty  walk  of 
three  miles  through  the  woods  brings  one  to  a  little  mountain 
tarn  absolutely  deserted  except  for  a  wood-cutter's  hut,  an  enter- 
prising native  who  has  established  a  rough  tea-shed  in  addition 
to  his  normal  occupation.  Climbing  up  and  across  a  great  land- 
slide the  summit  of  the  Toyotoge  pass  is  reached  1300  feet  above 
Yumoto.  There  is  a  fine  view  here  over  the  forest-clad  country 
to  the  north.  If  maps  are  to  be  relied  on  this  trail  can  be  followed 
to  the  Kinugawa,  bringing  one  ultimately  at  Kawaji,  which  lies 
on  the  road  between  Wakamatsu  and  Nikko.  For  those  whose 
object  is  the  hot  springs  of  Kusatsu  the  way  out  is  over  the  Kon- 
seitoge  and  a  few  minutes  before  seven  in  the  morning  saw  me 
on  my  way  along  the  rather  rough  trail,  which,  rising  gradually 
through  the  forest,  wins  much  ground  before  the  final  pull  up  the 
zigzags  of  the  saddle,  there  being  a  last  steep  climb  of  600  feet  to 
the  top  of  the  pass  1825  feet  above  Yumoto.  There  is  a  fine  view 
of  Xantaisan  on  the  Yumoto  side,  but  the  rest  of  the  day's  walk 
was  down  through  forest  and  over  a  bad  trail  which  required 
constant  attention  to  footing,  so  soft  and  full  of  roots  is  it.  The 
country  seems  absolutely  uninhabited,  no  side  trails  running  off 
until  nearly  down  to  the  valley  of  the  Ogawa.  Just  below  the 
saddle  is  a  little  mountain  lakelet  which  gives  a  glimpse  of  the 
open.  I  had  noted  horse  droppings  near  the  top  of  the  pass,  and 
just  beyond  this  lake  was  not  surprised  to  meet  a  train  of  horses 


170  SAKURAMBO 

being  driven  up  in  the  direction  of  Yumoto.  Now  it  is  well  under- 
stood that  horses  are  not  taken  across  Konseitoge.  There  are 
one  or  two  places  where  it  would  be  more  than  advisable  to  lead 
the  animal  but  otherwise  the  trail  is  feasible  for  them,  but  a  nega- 
tive answer  is  usually  given.  People  who  do  not  wish  to  walk 
can  take  kago,  the  native  litter,  otherwise  there  is  no  recourse  but 
to  one's  legs.  The  horses  I  saw  mounting  the  trail  were  all  fine 
well-groomed  animals  and  looked  like  cavalry  mounts.  They  were 
the  only  incident  in  the  nine  miles  to  the  peasant's  hut  at  the  head 
of  the  Ogawa  Valley.  Here  the  scenery  improves.  There  are 
remnants  of  mining  operations,  and  just  before  reaching  Higashi- 
Ogawa  an  abandoned  copper  mine  is  passed  to  the  left.  A  little 
after  noon  I  came  into  the  pretty  mountain  hamlet,  having  come 
down  some  3600  feet  from  the  top  of  the  pass.  It  can  be  added 
that  the  yadoya  along  this  route  have  the  reputation  of  furnishing 
a  minimum  of  foreign  convenience  with  a  maximum  of  European 
prices,  a  deal  table  or  a  chair  being  supposed  to  warrant  a  con- 
siderable advance  in  the  usual  charges. 

The  next  morning  at  half-past  six  I  started  down  the  valley 
on  "  Shank's  mare "  for  Numata.  twenty-three  miles  away. 
Horses  are  supposed  to  be  available  at  Higashi-Ogawa,  but  in  the 
Japanese  mountains  everywhere  one  must  be  prepared  to  fall  back 
on  one's  legs  as  the  last  resort,  for  they  are  quite  likely  to  be  called 
on.  A  few  miles  below  Higashi-Ogawa  the  Ogawa  is  crossed  and 
we  enter  the  valley  of  the  Katashinagawa.  There  is  a  beautiful 
view  up  and  down  from  the  top  of  the  hill  just  beyond  the  school- 
house,  even  in  this  out  of  the  way  place  that  substantial  institution 
being  a  prominent  feature.  All  down  the  valley  is  a  succession  of 
pretty  landscapes  and  at  Okkai  is  a  fine  gorge  picturesquely  seen 
from  the  bridge.  This  road  is  good  all  the  way.  At  Ohara  the 
inn  had  gone  out  of  business,  an  event  that  often  happens  in  the 
country.  A  farmhouse,  however,  offered  the  temporary  shelter 
necessary  for  tiffin.  If  one  could  judge  by  external  appearance 
there  was  a  good  deal  of  substantial  wealth  all  through  this  dis- 
trict. The  farm  buildings  were  large  and  elaborate,  mainly  half 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  171 

timber  and  plaster  work  and  with  far  less  of  the  flimsy  w-ooden 
work  that  is  a  common  feature  of  the  towns.  There  was  a  great 
deal  of  silk  spinning  going  on  everywhere.  There  is  a  peculiar 
feature  which  can  be  referred  to  in  connection  with  Japanese  clean- 
liness in  other  directions,  and  that  is  the  habit  of  spreading  grain 
and  fruit  on  mats  and  exposing  them  to  dry  in  the  sunshine.  In 
town  and  in  country  this  is  carried  on  by  the  side  of  the  public 
highway,  and  such  products  are  exposed  to  all  the  contamination 
that  the  dust  and  dirt  of  such  a  place  furnishes,  and  uncovered 
cesspools  placed  in  close  proximity  to  the  public  highway  for  con- 
venience of  passersby  add  to  the  danger.  The  latter,  as  has  been 
said,  are  a  very  necessary  feature  of  Japanese  farm  life,  for  night 
soil  is  the  universal  fertilizer.  They  are  'often  elaborately  pre- 
pared cisterns  dug  at  the  foot  of  a  hillside  in  the  soft  sandstone  or 
clay  so  widely  distributed  through  the  land.  Here  the  compost  is 
allowed  to  concentrate  and  ripen  for  weeks  before  using,  and  pro- 
tected from  the  weather  by  the  overhanging  rock  wall,  or  when 
built  in  the  open,  by  the  thatched  shed  erected  around  it.  The 
Kazusakatoge  had  temporarily  gone  out  of  business  owing  to  a 
landslide  which  removed  a  section  of  the  road,  so  I  turned  sharply 
to  the  right  and  began  the  ascent  of  a  little  pass  just  behind  Ohara. 
A  sunny  but  not  very  steep  climb  of  eight  hundred  feet  took  me 
to  the  top.  from  which  there  was  a  beautiful  view  over  toward 
the  Haruna  ranges  at  Ikao.  A  long  and  pretty  woodland  walk- 
down  leads  to  the  orchards  around  Takahira.  In  the  season  when 
the  fruit  is  ripening  the  Japanese  orchards  are  a  funny  sight.  In- 
stead of,  as  the  poets  sing,  the  beautiful  fruit  "  turning  its  blushes 
to  the  sun,"  every  peach,  or  pear,  or  apple,  is  carefully  wrapped  up 
in  a  paper  bag  to  protect  it  from  the  attacks  of  insects.  This  is 
no  particular  advantage  to  the  fruit  which  needs  the  sun  to  ripen 
properly,  but  the  native  fruit-grower  is  "  between  the  devil  and 
the  deep  sea  "  on  this  question.  They  take  this  trouble  with  the 
uashi.  The  name  usually  given  this  in  English  is  "  pear."  The 
fruit  itself  can  be  described  as  a  coarse,  watery,  woody,  slightly 
sweet  turnip,  without  the  tail  usually  attached  to  that  estimable 


172  SAKURAMBO 

and  far  more  useful  vegetable.  An  experience  with  the  nashi  is  of 
that  fibrous  nature  that  one  experiences  in  chewing-  sugar-cane — 
with  the  sugar  left  out.  Some  people  may  say  that  this  is  hor- 
rible. So  it  is,  but  the  Japanese  are  very  fond  of  the  nashi.  Per- 
haps a  development  in  another  field  of  their  fondness  for  the  gro- 
tesque. Most  Europeans  will  prefer  the  fragrant  and  beautiful 
Bartlett  or  Catherine  pear,  just  as  they  prefer  Apollo  Belvedere  or 
Donatello's  Faun  to  the  frowning  countenance  of  Emma  O  or 
the  twisting  and  scaly  dragons.  Fortunately  for  the  walker  the 
distances  given  in  the  guide-book  are  certainly  liberal,  as  I  came 
into  Numata  but  ten  minutes  over  the  hour  from  Takahira. 
Ricksha  are  supposed  to  be  available  at  the  latter  place  but  are  not 
to  be  relied  on  unless  returning  to  Numata.  After  eight  hours  of 
walking,  half-past  three  in  the  afternoon  brought  me  to  the  large 
and  excellent  commercial  house  which  is  the  main  inn  of  the  place. 
Emphasis  is  to  be  laid  on  the  fact  that  Konseitoge  is  to  be  taken 
in  this  direction.  By  the  time  Yumoto  is  reached  from  Nikko 
much  of  the  ascent  has  already  been  accomplished,  and  after 
climbing  Konseitoge  it  is  substantially  all  down-hill  with  the 
exception  of  the  short  pass  beyond  Ohara.  Numata  itself  lies  at 
1500  feet  elevation  or  5200  feet  below  the  top  of  Konseitoge.  It 
is  a  large,  busy  Japanese  town  and  a  distributing  centre  for  the  silk 
produced  in  the  district,  and  lies  on  the  plateau  which  here  forms  a 
series  of  bluffs  along  the  Tonegawa,  giving  the  town  the  appearance 
of  being  hoisted  in  the  air.  It  is  like  most  Japanese  towns,  and 
would  never  be  mistaken  for  the  hanging  gardens  of  Babylon. 

The  shortest  way  to  Nakanojo  on  the  Kusatsu  road  is  straight 
across  the  hills  on  one's  legs  or  on  horseback.  The  gorge  of  the 
Tonegawa  just  below  Numata  is,  however,  well  worth  the  detour, 
and  half-past  six  saw  me  bowling  down  the  broad  road  which 
makes  a  straight  plunge  down  to  the  river  bed,  a  piece  of  roadway 
often  seen  in  America  or  Europe  but  seldom  seen  in  Japan,  where 
a  narrow  cart  track  zigzagging  up  the  face  of  a  hillside  is  the  more 
frequent  means  of  negotiating  a  grade.  At  the  foot  of  the  hill  the 
river  is  crossed,  and  we  followed  a  fine  piece  of  macadam  running 


>     or  THf 
(    UNIVERSITY  1 

THROUGH    KOTSUKE         V.     ^§  °QR>i*JjX 

'tween  towering  cliffs  with  the  broad  green  river  boiling  along 
;lo\v  them.  At  the  mouth  of  the  gorge  my  men  turned  off  cross 
country  for  a  mile  to  strike  into  the  Nakanojo  road,  another  fine 
piece  of  metalling  and  with  an  easy  grade  following  up  the  wide 
valley  of  the  Agatsumagawa ;  Ikao  and  the  Haruna  Mountains 
line  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  and  we  are  running  along  the  foot 
of  the  Nakayama  range.  Ahead  is  the  mountain  district  of 
Kusatsu,  which  includes  the  big  fellows  lying  to  the  east  of  the 
Nagano  plain.  The  ride  is  a  very  picturesque  one  but  is  not 
shaded,  and  when  about  noon  I  reached  the  comfortable  inn  I  was 
glad  to  rest  for  a  couple  of  hours.  Nakanojo  is  quite  a  large 
village,  and  when  one  has  to  traverse  its  interminable  length  on  a 
hot  summer  day  before  the  shelter  of  the  Nabaya  is  reached,  a  very 
graphic  impression  is  obtained  as  to  its  proportions.  The  town 
was  getting  ready  for  the  great  midsummer  festival  of  the  Japanese 
(and  Chinese) ,  the  Bon  Matsuri,  or  "  Feast  of  the  Dead,"  at  which 
time  for  three  days  the  spirits  are  supposed  to  return  to  their 
former  haunts  on  earth.  Lanterns  therefore  must  be  prepared  to 
light  the  way  for  them.  These  lanterns  are  usually  plain  white 
without  even  the  decoration  of  a  few  Chinese  ideographs.  It  is  the 
great  time  for  visiting  temples  and  graves,  and  the  priests  are  kept 
busy  reciting  memorial  services.  Flowers  and  offerings  of  food 
are  placed  on  the  graves,  the  latter  with  no  idea  that  the  spirits 
partake  of  it  except  in  so  far  as  the  odour  is  agreeable  to  them. 
The  stoppage  of  business  while  not  so  complete  as  at  Shogetsu 
(New  Year's)  makes  a  very  respectable  second  to  that  great  fes- 
tival. New  clothes  are  prepared  and  the  Bon  kimono  and  obi 
(dress  and  sash)  are  quite  as  important  to  the  women  as  its  mid- 
winter predecessor.  Bon  Matsuri  is  a  beautiful  festival  and  the 
idea  behind  it  a  beautiful  idea ;  for  if  one  omits  the  lanterns  from 
the  scene  it  is  plainly  and  simply  the  "  All  Saints'  Day  "  of  our 
western  world,  when,  especially  in  Roman  Catholic  countries  the 
visit  to  the  graves  of  beloved  dead,  and  the  placing  of  flowers 
thereon  is  carried  out  in  very  much  the  same  way  as  is  going  on 
at  this  midsummer  date  in  Japan.  Religions  do  not  differ  much 


174  SAKURAMBO 

in  the  general  trend  of  these  celebrations.  The  Japanese  Matsuri's 
are  on  the  whole  rather  sober  in  their  tone,  the  only  element  of 
excitement  being  offered  when  at  times  the  "  God  Car  "  is  carried 
in  procession  through  the  street  and  the  worshippers  get  wrought 
up  to  a  point  beyond  their  own  control.  There  is,  however,  no 
such  outbreak  of  general  license  as  is  seen  in  Carnival  season  in 
some  cities  of  southern  Europe,  no  such  painful  sights  as  the 
processions  of  Holy  Week.  It  is  hardly  in  the  Japanese  to  muti- 
late and  maul  his  person  for  religious  purposes.  His  gods  are 
closely  connected  to  him  by  blood.  He  is  in  practice  if  not  in 
theory  a  good  deal  of  a  materialist,  and  attributes  the  same  utili- 
tarian habits  of  thought  to  his  ancestor  in  the  spirit  that  he  does 
to  the  living  generation.  Juggernaut  could  develop  in  the  South, 
but  not  on  Japanese  soil.  The  hair  shirt  and  the  scourge  have  as 
little  place  in  this  family  intercourse  with  the  gods.  Meditation 
and  introspection,  however,  quite  suits  their  oriental  habit.  The 
fate  of  the  Bodai  Daruma,  who  sat  in  meditation  for  nine  years 
until  his  legs  dropped  off,  is  far  more  likely  to  overtake  the  Jap- 
anese "  religious  "  than  that  of  the  Stylites  of  old  or  the  modern 
Indian  fakir. 

Bon  Matsuri  is  a  landmark  in  other  ways,  as  one  takes  it  in 
city  or  country.  In  the  country  it  is  celebrated  according  to  the 
old  calendar  and  comes  in  the  middle  of  August.  In  the  Tokyo 
district  "  Bon  "  is  celebrated  by  the  new  calendar  in  the  middle  of 
July  and  hence  comes  before  the  Doyo  or  hot  .wet  season.  It  is  the 
signal  for  a  scamper  to  the  hills  by  everyone  who  can  get  away  from 
the  plain  cities.  Previous  to  that  period  cool  weather  has  been  the 
average  and  while  sprinkled  with  intensely  hot  days  the  Nyubai  or 
cold  rainy  season,  lasting  up  to  the  first  ten  days  of  July,  often  gives 
some  chilly  rainy  days,  even  towards  its  end.  For  a  couple  of 
weeks  the  hot  dry  season  follows  on  and  then  comes  the  trying 
period  of  the  year  Doyo,  the  heat  of  which  breaks"  rather  sharply 
towards  the  middle  of  September,  although  the  rains  continue  for 
another  six  weeks.  Then  follows  the  cold  dry  season  up  to  tin 
nasty  sleety  weather  of  the  end  of  February  ushering  in  the  spring 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  175 

rains.  As  therefore  one  takes  Bon  in  country  or  city  he  is  resigned 
to  the  discomforts  of  an  approaching  steam  bath  or  he  is  looking 
forward  to  relief  within  measurable  distance.  The  Tokyo  sum- 
mer, however,  is  by  no  means  as  bad  as  the  latitude  would  give 
reason  to  suspect,  for  the  climate  being  insular  there  is  usually  a 
lowering  of  temperature  after  midnight  and  a  cool  breeze  from  the 
sea.  It  is  infinitely  better  than  that  found  for  instance  in  the 
eastern  United  States,  and  which  in  its  turn  is  celestial  compared 
to  the  Mississippi  Valley,  which  resembles  a  climate  the  exact 
reverse  of  celestial.  The  road  divides  at  Nakanojo,  both  branches 
going  to  Kusatsu,  and  both  having  their  vigorous  partisans.  I  took 
the  road  to  Sawatari.  Beyond  Nakanojo  it  is  much  inferior  to  the 
fine  highway  up  the  river  valley.  The  rise  is  not  very  heavy  but 
the  two  men  have  plenty  to  do  when  they  get  a  short  distance 
away  from  Nakanojo.  It  is  a  very  pretty  ride,  soon  entering  and 
twisting  among  the  intricacies  of  the  hills.  Two  hours  after  the 
start  one  man  dropped  behind,  and  I  found  myself  being  carefully 
lowered  down  a  steep  village  street,  which,  with  the  overhanging 
eaves  and  general  chalet  appearance  of  the  houses  was  so  startlingly 
like  a  bit  of  Switzerland  that  I  was  involuntarily  carried  back  a 
score  of  years  at  a  jump.  This  was  Sawatari.  The  impression 
remained  for  some  time  even  after  the  familiar  open  structure  of 
the  Japanese  house  had  regained  its  ascendency  in  the  physical  pict- 
ure, but  the  mental  picture  long  remained.  Sawatari  is  situated 
at  the  bottom  of  a  bowl  and  should  be  intolerably  hot,  but  was  not 
on  this  occasion.  Perhaps  the  elevation  (1900  feet)  had  some- 
thing to  do  with  it.  It  is  a  resort  for  the  victims  who  have  been 
•taking  the  acid  baths  of  Kusatsu,  its  waters  alleviating  the  terrible 
sores  and  eruptions  often  caused  thereby.  They  fill  the  inns,  of 
which  with  a  few  large  farmhouses  the  place  consists.  O  Kami 
San  killed  the  fatted  calf  (or  chicken)  for  the  foreigner,  and  as  the 
plucking  took  place  before  the  killing  she  did  not  add  thereby  to 
his  appetite.  Unfortunately  in  Japan  as  elsewhere  the  exigencies 
of  the  occasion,  or  the  ignorance  of  the  native,  allows  but  little 
time  between  "  grace  "  and  "  meat,"  and  does  not  teach  them  that 


176  SAKURAMBO 

freshly  killed  meat  boils  into  tough  strings  fit  for  a  fiddle  rather 
than  a  filet.  However,  they  meant  very  well,  and  having  a  whole 
upper  floor  available  threw  it  all  open  to  whatever  breeze  there  was 
on  this  hot  August  day. 

There  are  three  methods  of  progress  beyond  Sawatari :  horse- 
back, one's  legs,  and  the  native  kago.  I  now  swear  by  the  first 
two.  In  a  moment  of  confidence  and  a  rubbed  foot  I  selected  kago 
and  four  sturdy  bearers,  and  at  six-thirty  in  the  morning  started 
on  the  day's  ride  which  was  to  land  me  at  Kusatsu,  and  once  more 
amid  foreign  surroundings.  Now  for  the  first  fifteen  minutes  as 
one  lies  curled  up  in  the  litter  its  easy  swinging  is  the  poetry  of 
motion.  One  feels  they  could  ride  for  days — with  bearers  at 
forty-five  cents  a  day.  In  half  an  hour  one  has  misgivings,  and  in 
an  hour  full  conviction  that  he  has  found  the  original  model  of 
Cardinal  Balue's  cage.  An  ache  and  a  cramp  develops  in  every 
limb.  If  one  stretches  their  legs  outside  the  vehicle  then  they  are 
brought  into  contact  with  the  natural  cushions  of  the  forward 
bearer,  which  much  impedes  his  efforts  and  is  likely  to  ruffle  his 
temper.  The  frame  excoriates  the  backbone,  or  soon  raises  an 
artificial  hump  as  uneasily  one  shifts  from  shoulder  to  shoulder. 
The  position,  in  fact,  is  that  utterly  impossible  one  assumed  by 
those  aborigines  who  figure  so  tragically  behind  the  glass  cases 
of  the  Government  Museum  in  Washington,  having  long  since  done 
with  this  world.  This  doubling  of  the  body  is  also  a  favourite 
method  of  preparing  the  cadaver  among  the  Japanese,  and  perhaps 
the  kago  was  invented  as  a  sort  of  vicarious  preparation  for  their 
future  condition.  The  idea  of  riding  for  days  in  this  conveyance 
is  quickly  dispelled.  I  had  nine  hours  of  it,  and  postpone  the  rest, 
for  the  next  world.  The  kago  has  its  irritations  moreover  entirely 
apart  from  its  own  defects  of  construction.  Every  hundred  yards 
the  forward  man's  pole  goes  out  in  signal  to  change.  With  a 
jerk  you  are  swinging  between  the  two  staves  while  the  bearen 
change  places  and  shoulders.  A  hundred  yards  is  not  much  in 
twenty  odd  miles  and  one  soon  gets  nervously  anxious  to  measun 
the  distance  and  watch  for  that  signal,  and  contracts  a  personal 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  177 

enmity  against  the  leader  and  his  staff  which  that  patient  creature 
hardly   deserves.     The   road   to   Kusatsu   from    Sawatari   winds 
among  beautiful  hills  and  finally  ascends  a  pretty  ravine,  crossing  a 
not  very  high  pass  from  which  a  view  is  had  across  to  the  high 
plateau  of  Kusatsu  now  close  at  hand.     The  bare  bald  cone  of 
Shiranesan  marks  the  site  of  the  village  which  lies  at  the  base  of 
the  mountain.     Between  us,  however,  there  is  a  great  gulf  fixed. 
Down  the  bearers  go.     There  are  green  hills,  rushing  mountain 
streams,   choice   bits   of  woodland,    and   glimpses   of   some   real 
pasture  land,  and  always  looming  up  ahead  the  dim  purple  outline 
of  the  roughly  carved  mountain  mass  in  front  of  us.     The  scene 
quickly  changes  as  we  drop  down  through  the  picturesque  moun- 
tain hamlet  of  Namasu,  clinging  to  the  side  of  the  steep  hill  above 
the  Kusatsugawa.     The  view  up  and  down   the  gorge  here  is 
beautiful  and  the  mountain  masses  tower  up  all  around  us.     It  is 
now  twenty-eight  hundred  feet  dead  pull  up  to  the  plateau  on 
which  Kusatsu  lies,  and  the  stops  of  the  kago  men  become  frequent 
on  the  steep  zigzags.     However,  everything  must  come  to  an  end, 
and  at  last  we  emerge  on  the  breezy  upland.     The  grade  across 
this  rises  easily.     If  it  were  not  for  its  somewhat  hospital-like 
surroundings  Kusatsu  would  be  one  of  the  pleasantest  resorts  in 
Japan,  but  the  place  is  a  great  resort  for  the  lame,  the  halt,  and  the 
blind,  of  this  part  of  the  world.     Far  back  in  the  sixteenth  century 
it  was  known  as  a  health  resort.     Perhaps  longer.     The  Japanese 
have  for  a  long  time  made  medicinal  use  of  the  abundant  hot  water 
with   which   Nature  has   supplied  them.     They,   too,   have  their 
legend  of  Bath  and  Prince  Bladud,  so  to  speak,  for  the  somewhat 
legendary  and  dissipated  Prince  Karu  was  exiled  by  his  brother  to 
the  hot  springs  of  Dogo  in  lyo  which  interesting  event  took  place 
in  that  still  dubious  period  of  Japanese  history,  457  A.  D. 

I  was  soon  riding — not  in  state,  for  nine  hours  of  "  the  cage  " 
had  left  very  little  dignity — through  the  streets  of  the  town.  It  is 
mainly  a  collection  of  inns  together  with  the  supply  stores  necessary 
for  the  large  number  of  people  who  yearly  flock  here.  The  inns 
and  the  European  hotels  supply  private  baths,  a  very  necessary 


178  SAKURAMBO 

condition    considering   a    class    of   patients    which    resort    to    the 
cure.      Having   deposited   my    goods    and    chattels,    I    wandered 
through  the  town  which  one  notices  at  once  is  most  efficiently 
policed.     In  the  back  ways  and  by  places  there  is  a  most  unpleas- 
ant display  of  cotton  wadding  going  through  its  daily  washing  and 
drying  in  the  sun.     Looking  under  the  surface  of  its  Japanese 
exterior  one  could  see  that  Kusatsu  was  a  resort  of  the  first  rank 
in  importance.     The  inns  were  large  and  on  elaborate  scale,  but 
Kusatsu  was  essentially  a  place  where  the  earnest  business  of 
people  is  to  get  well,  and  there  were  a  very  large  number  of  them 
engaged  in  that  pressing  occupation.     There  was  of  course  plenty 
of  tinkle  of  the  samiscn  and  the  gay  laugh  of  the  geisha,  but  the 
real  stern  business  was  health  and  everything  was  subordinated 
to  that  end.     There  was  none  of  that  dolce  far  niente  air  shrouding 
it  and  so  conspicuous  in  places  more  frequented  as  summer  resorts, 
such  as  Ikao  and  Miyanoshita  and  Shuzenji.     There  is  far  too 
large  a  proportion  of  real  suffering  in  Kusatsu  to  make  it  agreeable 
as  a  pleasure  resort.     In  the  lower  part  of  the  town  is  the  leper 
settlement  separate  from  the  rest  of  the  community.     There  were 
no  really  bad  cases  exposed  to  view,  although  there  may  have  been 
many  within  the  houses.     Swollen  glistening  faces,  shapeless  noses 
and  lips,  puffed  eyes,  and  the  little  purple  black  dots  from  the  moxa 
marking  the  skin,  were  everywhere  to  be  seen,  walking  the  streets 
and  pursuing   their  ordinary   avocations.     It  is   said   that   while 
leprosy  is  not  cured  at  Kusatsu,  it  is  held  in  check,  and  those  resort- 
ing to  the  baths  at  stated  intervals  can  so  maintain  their  present 
condition.     I  took  my  way  back  to  the  centre  of  the  town  thor- 
oughly disgruntled  with  the  shadow  the  place  throws  over  one. 
The  business  of  disease  is  so  palpably  marked.     The  hot  steam 
from  the  springs  was  rising  in  a  great  cloud  in  the  centre  of  the 
square  and  from  a  public  bath-house  on  the  right  came  a  great 
shout  every  now  and  then  and  a  continual  clatter.     This  was  the 
Jikan  Yu  or  time  bath.     They  say  that  this  carries  a  temperature 
of  60°  C.  (140°  F.),  but  I  was  assured  by  an  habitue  that  it  was 
not  often  above  50°  C.  (122°  F.).     The  bathers  work  away  at  it 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  179 

for  nearly  an  hour,  beating  it  with  long  boards  to  cool  it,  and  then 
slowly  immerse  themselves  in  squads.  The  bath  lasts  five  minutes 
and  in  the  tender  condition  of  their  cotton-swathed  bodies  the 
contact  of  the  hot  acid  water  must  be  very  painful.  One  man  took 
three  and  a  half  minutes  of  his  five  minutes  before  he  was  fully 
immersed.  Clenched  jaws  and  strained  faces  showed  what  many 
of  them  were  undergoing.  The  foreign  hotel  at  Kusatsu  is  a 
primitive  little  place,  but  nicely  kept  and  situated  at  the  farther  end 
of  the  village,  within  easy  access  and  yet  removed  from  its  more 
unpleasant  features.  One  cannot  help  contrasting  the  develop- 
ment between  this  great  Japanese  watering  place  and  similar  devel- 
opments in  the  West.  It  is  a  fair  comparison  between  what  the 
Japanese  in  their  isolation  have  managed  to  evolve  from  their 
social  habits  and  what  the  westerner  has  evolved  from  his  social 
habits.  When  one  considers  the  great  gay  life  of  Carlsbad,  of 
Homburg,  of  Aix-les-Bains,  of  Biarritz;  centres  of  music,  art, 
literature,  of  every  device  by  wrhich  poor  humanity  has  tried  to 
get  away  from  the  burden  of  its  flesh  and  the  realities  of  things ; 
and  contrasts  it  with  the  narrow  little  round  of  this  Japanese  hot 
springs  one  cannot  help  feeling  how  far  the  Japanese  have  been 
left  behind  in  the  development  of  their  social  life.  The  pretty 
little  geisha  with  her  artistic  posturing  and  her  samisen  is  a  very 
poor  substitute  for  the  music  of  the  great  European  masters  inter- 
preted daily  by  expert  hands  in  the  hundreds  of  Casinos  sprinkled 
through  the  Bads  of  Europe.  The  former  rouses  the  race  en- 
thusiasm of  her  hearers,  and  it  is  no  mean  thing  to  say  that  they  are 
capable  of  being  so  aroused,  but  the  latter  rouse  the  soul  enthusiasm 
of  their  hearers,  between  which  there  is  all  the  difference  of  thing? 
material  and'  things  eternal.  The  Japanese  seems  always  the 
species  "  Japonicus."  He  never  rises  mentally  to  the  genus 
*'  homo." 

Apart  from,  or  rather  in  connection  with  the  hot  springs,  the 
active  volcano  of  Shiranesan  is  the  most  interesting  object  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Kusatsu.  Eruptions  are  quite  frequent,  the  last 
having  taken  place  in  1897.  The  present  crater  lies  a  short  dis- 


180  SAKURAMBO 

tance  off  the  Shibu  trail  and  an  early  start  from  Kusatsu  gives  time 
for  a  glance  and  still  to  be  able  to  reach  Shibu  in  good  time  before 
night.  If  it  is  proposed,  however,  to  push  on  to  the  top  of  the 
mountain  this  would  hardly  be  possible.  Although  Kusatsu  lies 
on  the  lower  slopes  of  the  mountain  the  summit  is  not  visible  from 
the  village  owing  to  some  big  grassy  spurs  which  shut  off  all  view 
just  behind  the  place.  An  excellent  horse  trail  runs  as  far  as  the 
peasant's  house  near  Shirane,  and  there  are  beautiful  views  across 
the  cut  up  country  to  the  Shimotsuke  ranges  of  which  Nantaisan 
and  the  Yumoto  Shiranesan  are  conspicuous  objects.  Incidentally 
it  can  be  added  that  one  should  know  something  of  the  Japanese 
kc*na  alphabet,  at  least  to  the  extent  of  the  word  doku,  for  some  of 
the  streams  in  this  neighbourhood  are  arsenical.  Notices  are 
posted,  of  course  in  the  native  script,  and  in  the  absence  of  further 
advice  it  is  safer  to  avoid  drinking  from  any  of  these  streams. 
On  the  higher  slopes  we  pass  into  the  district  devastated  by  the 
last  eruption  of  the  mountain.  This  apparently  was  mainly  steam, 
for  the  trees  have  been  killed  outright  but  not  overwhelmed  by 
any  debris  from  the  volcano.  Steam  had  not  been  given  the  credit 
due  to  it  in  this  class  of  natural  phenomena  previous  to  the  terrible 
experience  with  Mont  Pelee  in  Martinique,  when  it  showed  how 
effectually  it  could  kill  without  destroying  its  victims,  whether 
animal  or  vegetable.  The  peasant  hut  is  reached  2300  feet  above 
Kusatsu.  At  this  point  a  rough  path  leads  off  the  main  trail  to 
the  bald  bare  cone  on  the  slope  of  the  mountain  which  contains 
the  present  crater  now  occupied  by  a  lake.  This  cone  is  a  disin- 
tegrated pile  of  shingle  without  a  trace  of  any  lava  flow  from  the 
lip.  We  follow  the  cone  around  to  the  former  sulphur  refining 
works  in  the  southwest  corner,  a  distance  of  something  less  than 
a  mile  from  where  we  left  the  main  trail.  The  refining  works 
consisted  of  four  or  five  small  buildings,  the  framework  only 
standing.  A  few  marks  of  fire  were  visible  but  they  have  gone  to 
decay  more  from  neglect  than  any  effect  of  the  eruption.  There 
was  no  evidence  of  an  eruption  of  mud  or  cinder  in  this  direction. 
The  tramway  running  into  the  crater  had  decayed  much  from  the 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  181 

same  cause — neglect — and  was  partly  covered  up  by  the  washings 
of  the  soil  from  the  cone  above.  They  ascend  the  sharp  crater 
slope  obliquely  at  an  easy  angle  and  enter  the  crater  by  a  cutting 
about  twenty  feet  in  depth.  It  does  not  furnish  a  good  entrance 
now  to  the  crater  which  is  best  reached  by  a  path  just  behind  the 
huts,  and  which  leads  to  the  edge  of  the  crater  and  down  into  it  by 
an  easily  graded  path.  Waraji,  or  straw  sandals,  are  very  useful. 
To  the  east,  northeast,  and  southeast  of  the  volcano  the  forest 
has  been  killed  but  not  buried,  the  tree  roots  being  plainly  visible. 
The  crater  walls  vary  in  height  from  fifty  to  a  hundred  feet  or 
more.  To  the  northwest  beyond  the  present  crater,  which  is 
situated  on  the  slope  of  the  mountain,  the  real  summit  of  Shirane 
rises  to  7500  feet  according  to  geological  survey  figures.  Stand- 
ing twenty  feet  above  the  lake  the  barometer  reading  was  2700 
feet  above  Kusatsu  or  6500  feet,  the  same  as  the  elevation  of  the 
refining  works  outside  the  rim.  The  lake  is  in  the  northeast 
corner  of  the  crater,  roughly  round  in  shape,  although  somewhat 
irregular.  It  washes  the  steep  crater  walls  on  all  sides  but  the 
southwest.  The  floor  of  the  crater  on  this  side  has  a  very  gentle 
slope  from  wall  to  lake.  A  few  drainage  streams  have  cut  down 
to  the  surface  and  are  the  only  means  of  approaching  the  water. 
At  this  date  (August,  1904),  no  steam  was  visible  and  in  but  few 
places  was  the  water  disturbed  by  any  sign  of  rising  gas.  It  was 
very  turbid  with  washings  from  the  sides  of  the  crater.  The 
width  of  the  crater  looks  not  more  than  1500  feet  of  which  the 
lake  occupies  about  one-half.  The  southwest  end  of  the  crater 
narrows  to  a  second  basin  containing  a  shallow  lakelet.  The  level 
of  this  is  purely  due  to  rainfall.  A  barrier  separates  it  from  the 
central  lake  and  it  has  cut  a  channel  through  the  soft  material,  a 
stream  at  times  connecting  it  by  a  small  cascade  ten  or  twelve  feet 
in  height  with  the  central  lake.  There  was  no  sign  of  outflow  of 
fresh  lava.  The  volcanic  detritus  was  mainly  a  highly  silicious 
tufa,  sometimes  very  finely  divided  and  forming  a  mud  which  on 
drying  caked  into  dusty  friable  masses.  A  few  fragments  picked 
up  were  more  basic,  being  highly  ferruginous.  The  steam,  evi- 


182  SAKURAMBO 

dently  emitted  freely  at  times  by  the  volcano,  carried  sulphurous 
gases — hydrogen  sulphide  mainly  from  the  odour — and  pieces  of 
pure  sulphur  were  found  on  the  crater  floor.  Much  of  the  tufa  was 
sulphur  coated,  and  where  the  rock  had  solidified  into  a  natural 
cement  sulphur  was  normally  a  constituent  as  such.  From  absence 
of  lava  flows,  Shiranesan  apparently  is  to  be  classed  at  present  with 
the  explosive  type  of  volcanoes.  As  with  Bandaisan  further  north. 
The  last  eruption  of  Bandaisan  ( 1888)  was  on  a  much  larger  scale 
than  at  Shirane.  The  general  character,  cinder  and  mud,  is  the 
same. 

There  is  no  particular  reason  why  a  horse  should  not  eat  rice, 
and  yet  it  was  interesting  to  see  my  nag's  appreciation  of  the 
cooked  article.  A  good  deal  of  my  tiffin  box  was  left  untouched, 
and  he  ate  it  up  to  that  last  grain  in  one  sniff.  I  spent  some  time 
on  Shirane  as  I  had  no  wish  to  "  rush  through  "  the  volcano,  and 
then  returned  to  Kusatsu.  For  my  onward  journey  the  next  day 
I  substituted  the  foreign  kago  which  differs  from  the  native  in  pro- 
viding room  for  the  foreigners'  legs.  It  can  be  granted  that  it  is 
an  improvement  on  the  native  article,  but  pretty  much  anything  is 
that.  By  slow  degrees  we  again  reached  the  peasant's  hut  at 
Shirane.  The  horse  trail  here  strikes  right  up  and  across  the  ridge 
and  is  said  to  be  very  bad  on  the  Shibu  side.  The  kago  trail, 
however,  follows  almost  on  a  level  along  the  ridge  to  a  lower  pass 
on  the  mountain,  soon  rejoining  the  horse  trail  in  the  descent. 
There  is  but  little  scenery,  for  the  path  mainly  runs  on  the  level 
through  the  forest,  but  on  the  Shibu  side  when  a  little  way  down 
there  is  a  glorious  view  down  the  valley  to  the  Negano  plain  nearly 
6000  feet  below.  This  is  not  seen  as  a  flat  plain  spread  out  below 
the  eye,  but  is  framed  in  at  the  outlet  of  a  wild  gorge  hemmed  in 
by  lofty  mountains.  The  dark  gloom  of  the  natural  setting  and 
the  valley  below  smiling  in  the  sunlight  were  a  picture  long  to 
remember.  The  Shibutoge  is  one  of  Japan's  finest  mountain 
passes.  The  long  steep  descent  was  very  interesting  in  spite  of 
the  .exasperating  kago,  and  not  the  least  so  the  sharp  drop  down 
into  the  picturesque  plateau  or  mountain  valley  in  which  Shibu 


THROUGH    KOTSUKE  183 

lies.     Shibu  is  deservedly  much  esteemed  by  those  taking  the  after- 
cure  of  the  Kusatsu  baths.     It  has  good  inns,  charming  surround- 
ings, and  itself  is  a  clean  pretty  little  mountain  village.     There  is 
some  down  grade  from  Shibu,  through  a  pretty  country,  but  my 
kurumaya  soon  brought  me  down  to  the  level  of  the  Xagano  plain, 
and  crossing  the  broad  Chickumagawa  a  hot  and  dusty  ride  brought 
me  to  the  railway  station  at  Toyono.     In  spite  of  its  limitations  as 
a  town  its  yadoya  was  a  very  pretentious  affair  for  a  station  house, 
and  did  a  rushing  business.     It  is  only  an  hour  into  Nagano, 
whose  great  Zenkoji  temple  soon  appeared,  the  conspicuous  mark 
in  the  landscape.     The  streets  were  full  of  pilgrims  in  their  white 
kimonos  and  broad  mushroom  hats.     The  inns  and  shops  were 
jammed  with  them,  and  the  venders  of  charms  and  rosaries  lining 
the  approach  to  the  temple  were  doing  a  roaring  trade.     Bunches 
of  these  holy  men  were  hanging  around  the  shop  front  much  like 
flies  around  sugar.     Zenkoji  is  a  very  holy  place.     If  native  report 
could  be  believed  it  was  founded  at  the  beginning  of  the  seventh 
century,  and  although  elsewhere  this  part  of  Japan  seemed  still 
to  be  debatable  ground  with  the  Ebisii  sullenly  drawing  off  to  the 
north,  the  monks  of  Zenkoji  seemed  to  hold  their  own  in  this 
remote  corner.     It  is  the  original  resting  place  of  the  image  of 
Shaka  Muni,  the  Buddha  presented  to  the  Emperor  by  a  Korean 
king  in  552  A.  D.     An  image  over  which  there  was  no  end  of 
trouble  as  the  new  religion  had  to  fight  its  way  before  "  the  powers 
that  were "   agreed  to  smile  upon   it  and  tolerate  the  worship. 
'  The  powers  that  were  "  were  badly  split  on  the  question,  and 
it  was  only  settled  by  considerable  blood  letting  during  which  the 
issue  was  very  uncertain.     However,  here  they  are  supposed  to  rest 
now.     The  present  buildings  have  no  connection  with  such  an- 
tiquity.    They  are  comparatively  old,  however,  for  Japanese  tem- 
ples, dating  from  the  fifteenth  century  and  later.     One  finds  this 
frequently  to  be  the  case.     New  buildings  on  an  old  foundation, 
the  temples  at  Nara  giving  some  of  the  few  instances  of  real  age 
in  parts  of  the  Horyuji  temple  and  the  pagoda  of  Yakushi,  and 
which  really  do  belong  to  the  seventh  century.     By  the  next  after- 


184  SAKURAMBO 

noon  I  was  being  shoved  through  the  grimy  tunnels  of  the  Usui 
pass,  with  exasperating  glimpses  of  the  roadway  following  the 
curves  of  the  hills  and  giving  beautiful  views  all  the  way  from 
Karuizawa  to  Yokokawa.  If  this  section  is  walked  or  ridden  one 
would  gain  much  in  scenery  and  lose  but  little  in  time,  for  the  cog- 
road  is  intolerably  slow.  Nightfall  saw  me  settled  in  my  inn  at  the 
foot  of  the  fantastic  rocks  of  Myogisan.  It  has  been  remarked  by 
someone  that  Japanese  scenery  must  be  visited  to  really  appreciate 
the  great  Japanese  landscape  painters.  There  is  no  better  place 
than  Myogisan  to  have  an  object  lesson  as  to  those  fantastic 
shadow  landscapes  so  common  in  Japanese  pictorial  art.  When 
one  sees  the  erratic  peaks  with  their  jutting  crags  and  impossibly 
placed  trees,  hanging  in  a  cloudland,  so  to  speak,  which  shrouds 
their  base  from  view,  the  inspiration  of  the  Japanese  artist  is  seen 
to  lie  not  so  much  in  his  imagination  as  in  his  experience.  And 
an  early  morning  at  Myogi,  when  the  mist  still  lies  along  the  low- 
lands, will  furnish  many  such  a  view  so  familiar  to  us  in  Japanese 
kakemono. 


VI 


SHINANO  WAY 

"  Sufficiently  hast  thou  demonstrated  this  proposition, 
considerable  or  otherwise :     That  the  mythus  of  the  Christian 
Religion  looks  not  in  the  eighteenth  century  as  it  did  in  the 

eighth But  what  next?     Wilt  thou  help   us  to 

embody  the  divine  spirit  of  that  Religion  in  a  new  mythus? 
What!  thou  hast  no  faculty  in  that  kind?  Only  a  torch 
for  burning,  no  hammer  for  building?  Take  our  thanks 

then,    and    thyself    away." 

— Sartor  Resartus. 

That  common  feature  of  a  Japanese  landscape  at  the  begin- 
ning of  May — strings  of  paper-fish  ranging  from  three  to  a  dozen 
feet  in  length  and  tugging  away  in  the  breeze  like  the  living  carp 
they  represent — is  the  sign  manual  that  boys  are  a  feature  of  the 
household  effects  in  the  home  over  or  before  which  they  are  flying. 
When  the  boys'  festival  comes  around,  the  next  following  the  new- 
comer's birthday,  he  gets  a  number  of  presents  consisting  of  these 
paper-fish  or  of  little  groups  of  dolls  representing  the  heroes  of  old 
Japan — Jimmu  Tenno,  Hideyoshi  and  his  great  general,  Kato 
Kiyomasa,  or  the  demon-haunted  Shoki.  The  fish  are  hung  out  to 
the  breeze  which  swells  their  paper  bodies,  and  gives  them  a  singu- 
larly life-like  motion  as  they  plunge  and  wriggle  and  undulate  as  if 
hooked  in  their  natural  medium.  There  may  be  one  such  fish  and 
there  may  be  a  dozen.  Every  year  they  are  so  suspended  from  a 
pole  towering  above  the  housetop,  and  as  years  and  weather  do 
their  work  they  gradually  diminish  in  numbers,  so  that  by  the  time 
the  boy  has  reached  manhood  all  the  paper-fish  have  probably  dis- 
appeared into  the  atmosphere,  gently  by  a  piecemeal  process  or 
forcibly  by  an  exceptionally  strong  breeze  and  weak  tackling.  A 
cheap  one  can  be  bought  for  twenty-five  sen  and  a  large  handsome 
one  for  a  yen  and  a  half.  They  are  strongly  put  together  and  elab- 
orately decorated  and  last  far  longer  than  their  frail  material  would 

185 


186  SAKURAMBO 

give  any  reason  to  expect.  Girls  are  somewhat  at  a  discount 
in  a  Japanese  house,  and  this  is  due  simply  to  the  different  position 
which  the  Japanese  family  occupies  in  relation  to  the  State.  In 
outward  form  the  Japanese  in  this  respect  do  not  differ  in  any  way 
from  the  western  nations.  They  are  at  a  different  stage  of  devel- 
opment. Their  usage  differs  from  the  present  not  the  past  usage  of 
western  nations.  In  these  present  days  when  we  speak  of  our 
family  in  distinction  from  household  in  America,  and  to  nearly  the 
same  extent  in  Europe,  we  refer  to  a  bond  which  is  confined  to 
blood  relationship,  and  which  has  very  little  connection  left  with  the 
law  except  in  so  far  as  intestate  succession  is  concerned.  The  family 
as  far  as  we  are  concerned  is  a  bond  of  social  fellowship  far  more 
intimate  than  with  the  rest  of  the  community;  a  public  opinion 
which  is  likely  to  judge  our  failings  far  more  leniently  than  the 
said  community.  Their  support,  however,  in  these  days,  is  purely 
a  matter  of  good  will,  and  entirely  apart  from  any  legal  compulsion 
to  stand  and  fall  together.  This  is  due  to  the  development  of 
individualism  among  us,  the  placing  on  the  man  just  as  few  re- 
straints as  are  compatible  with  the  public  peace  and  security  of 
others.  This  condition  is  the  result,  however,  of  a  long  and 
gradual  evolution  from  a  very  different  state.  Even  in  these  days 
a  man  cannot  stand  entirely  alone.  This  is  recognized  in  every 
country  no  matter  how  free  the  individual  has  been  left  to  make  the 
best  use  of  his  powers  that  he  can  to  his  own  advantage.  Every 
man  owes  certain  duties  to  the  State  in  the  form  of  personal  ser- 
vice or  taxes ;  and  the  man  without  a  country,  while  protected  by 
a  legal  code  far  more  far  reaching  than  in  olden  days,  is,  at  the 
last  appeal,  more  helpless  to-day  than  at  any  time  in  the  world's 
history. 

In  the  early  days  when  true  history  dawns  in  a  nation  we  find 
that  man's  first  refuge,  his  first  call  for  aid,  is  to  the  family.  It  is 
the  origin  of  the  State.  Under  the  old  Roman  law  the  father  was 
supreme  head,  chief  and  priest.  Not  only  the  fortunes  but  the 
lives  of  the  family  were  under  his  control  and  subject  to  his  will. 
Children  or  wife  were  as  completely  in  his  power  as  any  slave  in 


SHINANO  WAY  187 

the  household.  The  law  was  not  likely  to  be  invoked  except  in 
case  of  some  informality  in  procedure.  The  old  law  of  the  Twelve 
Tables  was  a  formulated  code.  Provided  procedure  was  accord- 
ing to  the  code  from  a  legal  point  of  view  the  justice  of  the  cause 
was  not  involved.  A  judge  could  not  enter  into  motives  influ- 
encing action.  Custom  and  the  establishment  of  the  Censorship 
were  the  only  limitations  on  the  father's  power.  In  the  Roman 
household  as  so  constituted,  where  the  father  was  supreme  over  the 
life  and  property  of  those  constituting  it,  two  questions  were  inevi- 
table:  that  of  succession,  and  that  of  the  woman.  The  question 
of  succession  was  settled  by  giving  preference  to  agnate  heirs. 
That  is,  although  a  woman  inherited  equally  with  her  brothers  in 
her  father's  estate  her  control  over  such  property,  or  rather  the 
control  of  her  husband,  was  limited  to  her  dower  rights  and  even 
over  this  she  had  power  of  testament  so  that  she  could  return  it  to 
her  family.  By  the  time  of  the  Empire  the  family  had  been  very 
thoroughly  disintegrated  by  the  State,  which  had  usurped  most  of 
the  paternal  police  powers.  Whereas  the  State  had  assumed  the 
authority  of  the  father  in  most  particulars  relating  to  property  and 
the  body  politic,  it  kept  woman  still  under  thorough  tutelage  in 
reference  to  her  property.  This  she  could  enjoy  for  her  own  uses 
but  could  not  use  it  for  the  benefit  of  others.  She  could  assume 
obligations  for  herself,  but  not  for  others.  As  Professor  Villari 
tersely  puts  it,  she  could  "  hold  property,  increase  her  fortune,  make 
her  will,  lose  her  virtue ;  but  her  dowry,  guaranteed  and  kept  intact 
by  law,  remains  hers  to  the  end  of  her  life."  Of  course  in  modern 
times  both  man  and  woman  have  been  practically  freed  from  the 
family  control  here  described.  In  Europe,  especially  in  France, 
what  is  known  as  the  Family  Council,  can  intervene  in  affairs  of 
its  members,  but  only  under  the  supervision  of  the  Court  by  whom 
its  decision  must  be  endorsed.  Or,  as  in  Anglo  Saxon  countries, 
when  relations  usually  call  on  the  intervention  of  the  Court  in  cases 
of  incapacity  requiring  guardianship.  This,  however,  is  but  the 
merest  shadow  left  of  the  former  power  of  the  family  council. 
It  is  to  be  noted  that  the  family  council  had  nothing  but  a  moral 


188  SAKURAMBO 

power  over  the  Roman  pater.  Legally  his  position  held  good. 
This  was  markedly  different  from  the  system  prevailing  in  the 
German  tribes,  and  of  which  the  power  of  the  French  family  council 
still  gives  a  remaining  hint.  With  the  same  position  as  priest  and 
chief  the  father's  power  was  limited  by  the  power  of  the  family 
council  made  up  of  the  able-bodied  males,  whose  subordination  to 
him  was  limited  much  as  the  subordination  of  the  chiefs  to  the 
king.  A  strong  tie  in  times  of  peril  and  a  weak  one  as  soon  as  the 
danger  is  passed.  Here  also  the  woman  was  under  tutelage,  but 
it  was  the  tutelage  now  of  the  far  less  oppressive  will  of  the  coun- 
cil. Here,  too,  she  had  rights  of  inheritance,  and  her  dower  was 
protected  against  her  husband.  As  she  took  it  with  her,  so  she 
took  it  away  with  her  when  the  connection  was  dissolved  by  death 
or  otherwise,  and  barring  her  own  issue  the  law  maintained  the 
interest  of  her  own  family.  In  both  the  Roman  and  Germanic 
family  it  may  be  noted  that  while  the  family  hearth  is  essentially 
religious  in  these  early  times  all  their  regulations  as  to  the  power 
granted  to  the  father  and  the  family  are  directed  towards  property 
rights.  The  property  of  the  family  is  not  to  be  diverted  if  possible 
into  other  channels.  In  Anglo-Saxon  countries,  where  man  has 
reached  his  greatest  centrifugal  power,  the  predominant  right  of 
the  agnate  line  of  succession  has  died  away  completely,  and  descend- 
ants of  the  same  degree  inherit  equally  whether  on  father's  or 
mother's  side.  The  law  of  "  entail,"  which  under  certain  circum- 
stances can  be  broken  in  England,  but  which  in  some  continental 
countries  is  very  rigorous,  is  about  the  only  modern  instance  of  the 
ancient  supremacy  of  the  family. 

In  comparing  the  Japanese  family  with  these  two  forms  which 
have  so  strongly  influenced  western  development,  a  difference  of 
such  development  can  be  noticed  at  once.  Whereas  all  originated 
on  a  religious  basis,  the  Roman  and  German  family  law  quickly 
developed  on  the  political  side,  the  religious  element  soon  disap- 
pearing from  view.  On  the  political  side  there  has  always  been  a 
struggle  between  Roman  and  German.  The  centripetal  force  of 
the  former,  which  resulted  in  the  gradual  transfer  of  the  family, 


SHIXAXO  WAY  189 

powers  of  the  State,  was  brought  into  final  concussion  with  the 
centrifugal  tendency  of  the  German  tribes  when  the  barbarians 
finally  overwhelmed  the  western  Empire  in  the  fifth  century. 
The  State  having  gone  to  pieces,  the  Italian  people  had  to  fall 
back  on  the  old  family  law  based  on  the  "  patria  potestas." 
In  its  centralizing  power  this  was  so  much  better  an  instru- 
ment than  the  looser  family  council  of  the  Germanic  tribes 
that  in  time  it  not  only  gained  the  supremacy  but  carried 
with  it  a  great  mass  of  the  later  Roman  legislation  still 
maintained  in  force  among  the  conquered  people;  although  the 
code  the  Germans  introduced  with  them  found  place  for  a  time 
side  by  side  with  it  and  more  or  less  modified  it.  Hence  in  the 
ripened  legislature  of  the  Italian  communes  in  the  twelfth  and 
thirteenth  centuries  such  legislation  is  all  directed  to  strengthening 
the  family  influence,  although  the  "  patria  potestas "  is  much 
curbed.  Very  much  curbed,  the  object  being  the  unity  of  the 
family  even  to  the  extent  of  making  them  responsible  for  each 
other.  To  still  further  effect  and  maintain  this  unity  property 
succession  was  made  very  rigid,  and  while  the  dower  right  of  the 
woman  was  still  in  force,  it  was  limited  in  value  and  still  more 
limited — this  being  the  real  reason — in  so  far  as  such  dower  rights 
passed  into  the  control  of  outsiders  or  members  of  another  com- 
mune. Now  in  this  supremacy  of  the  family  council  here  checked 
and  strengthened  by  the  Commune,  together  with  the  rigidity  of  the 
family  bond  itself,  the  Japanese  family  has  much  more  in  common 
than  \vith  either  Roman  or  German  family  taken  separately.  In 
origin  the  reason  is  radically  different.  In  the  Italian  communes 
it  is  purely  political,  the  object  being  to  make  the  family  responsible 
for  its  members  and  hold  the  family  under  the  immediate  control 
of  the  Commune;  the  old  religious  basis  as  found  in  Rome  and 
Germany  has  been  eliminated.  In  Japan  also  it  was  the  family 
that  was  to  be  held  responsible  for  its  members,  it  was  the  family 
with  \vhich  the  State  dealt ;  but  its  origin  and  its  usages  are  purely 
religious.  On  its  political  side,  however,  the  lawr  took  the  family 
as  the  convenient  unit,  just  as  it  would  have  taken  the  individual 


190  SAKURAMBO 

as  unit,  or  will  take  the  individual  as  unit  in  the  future  if  Japanese 
development  continues  on  western  lines.  Even  in  the  old  days, 
while  the  father's  power  in  Japan  extended  over  the  lives  of  his 
family  he  was  subject  to  the  family  council,  which,  under  the  Jap- 
anese system,  practically  governed  the  family.  There  is  no  reason 
to  believe  that  the  system  is  not  original  with  them.  With  the 
earliest  records  it  is  already  found  crystallized  into  shape,  although 
the  formula  is  probably  adopted  from  China. 

Religion  being  Ancestor  Worship,  the  most  essential  feature 
is  the  headship  and  the  maintenance  of  the  family.  There  must 
always  be  a  representative  to  keep  up  the  family  worship  and  the 
law  is  all  directed  to  effecting  this  object.  Head  succession  goes 
according  to  a  Lex  Salique,  failing  which  the  course  is  adoption 
from  cadet  branches  of  the  house  or  even  of  outsiders  by  mar- 
riage, that  is  the  marriage  of  a  daughter  of  the  house  and  adoption 
of  the  son-in-law.  The  privileges  of  the  headship  are  great.  No 
member  of  the  family  can  marry,  divorce,  or  adopt  without  his 
consent;  no  member  can  change  his  residence  or  refuse  to  reside 
in  the  place  appointed  by  the  head ;  he  is  the  preferred  heir  to  the 
property,  receiving  one-half  if  a  lineal  descendant  and  one-third  if 
not  a  lineal  descendant  of  the  deceased  predecessor ;  and  he  is  heir 
at  law  to  all  the  family  property  not  covered  by  the  laws  of  suc- 
cession. The  diasdvantages  are  great.  The  whole  public  duty 
of  the  family  rests  on  his  shoulders,  and  the  support  failing  nearer 
kindred;  he  is  not  allowed  to  take  action  imperilling  the  family 
interests;  or  to  resign  his  headship  unless  he  has  reached  the  age 
of  sixty,  or  has  obtained  the  consent  of  his  successor  to  so  abdicate. 
That  his  duties  are  no  light  taslf  is  evidenced  plainly  enough  by  the 
number  who  do  abdicate  when  they  get  the  opportunity.  In  fact, 
it  is  not  hard  to  see  that  the  somewhat  narrow  field  of  the  individual 
is,  in  his  case,  still  more  rigidly  confined,  and  he  can  hardly  take 
any  action  without  considering  the  effect  it  may  have  on  the  wider 
interests  of  which  he  is  the  guardian.  To  some  extent  he  is  aided 
by  the  family  council,  who  at  times  deal  with  marriage,  divorce, 
adoption,  or  family  disputes.  These  matters  were  and  are  settled 


SHIXAXO    WAY  191 

within  the  family.  In  cases  involving  the  interests  of  minors  and 
orphans  the  family  council  is  obliged  to  act.  Appeal  can  be  made 
from  their  decisions  to  the  Courts,  which  on  grounds  of  public 
policy  will  uphold  the  council  if  it  is  possible  to  do  so.  As  in 
western  life,  property  although  a  subsidiary  interest,  is  an  im- 
portant one.  Hence  marriage  is  one  of  the  most  important  func- 
tions of  the  headship.  Woman  who  cuts  a  subsidiary  figure  in 
the  West  here  cuts  none  at  all.  Only  under  one  condition  does 
woman  figure,  and  that  is  when  owing  to  failure  of  heirs  male  she 
becomes  the  head  of  the  house.  Under  all  other  conditions  her 
exit  from  the  family  is  a  radical  one.  Her  connection  with  it 
ceases  with  her  marriage  and  she  becomes  part  and  parcel  of  her 
husband's  family,  and  the  ceremony  of  purification  following  lier 
departure  to  her  husband's  house  is  akin  to  that  following  the 
removal  of  a  corpse.  Legally  speaking,  her  name  is  erased  from 
the  register  of  her  family  and  entered  on  that  of  her  husband's 
family.  Marriage  therefore  means  the  entrance  or  the  loss  of  a 
member  of  the  family,  and  hence  comes  under  the  power  of  the  head 
of  the  family,  and  if  marriage  takes  place  without  his  consent  he 
can  expel  the  offending  member  and  forbid  his  or  her  re-entrance 
into  the  family.  A  species  of  excommunication  from  the  house- 
hold gods.  In  relation  to  illegitimates  the  Japanese  family  law  is 
more  akin  to  the  German  law  than  to  the  Roman  or  Communal 
code.  Under  the  Roman  code  an  illegitimate  child  could  only  be 
recognized  by  adoption,  having  in  that  privilege  equality  with  a 
stranger.  Under  the  Japanese  law  an  illegitimate  child  recognized 
by  the  father  becomes  a  co-heir  with  the  legitimate  children,  although 
his  share  of  the  parents'  estate  is  less  than  that  taken  tyy  a  legitimate 
child.  Under  the  German  code  the  illegitimate  child  also  shared 
in  the  parents'  estate,  and  in  much  the  same  proportion  as. under 
the  present  Japanese  law — two-thirds  to  one-third — although  the 
ratio  depended  within  certain  limits  on  the  number  of  legitimate 
children.  These  are  of  course  all  measures  to  maintain  the  family 
in  the  blood  line.  But  as  in  old  Rome  it  was  necessary  to  maintain 
the  family  in  its  relation  to  the  State,  so  in  Japan  it  has  always 


192  SAKURAMBO 

been  held  to  be  necessary  to  maintain  the  family  in  relation  to 
worship  of  ancestors,  and  a  means  had  to  be  found  when  lack  of 
heirs  in  male  line  threatened  its  extinction.  The  remedy  in  both 
cases  was  found  in  adoption,  limited  according  to  the  Roman  law, 
and  up  to  recent  times  unlimited  by  the  Japanese  law.  Under  the 
Roman  law  the  adopted  had  to  be  so  far  removed  in  age  from  the 
adopter — fifteen  years — as  to  be  properly  the  adopter's  child,  and 
right  to  adopt  was  limited  to  those  who  had  passed  fifty  years. 
Under  the  old  Japanese  code  no  natural  relation  in  age  was  taken 
into  consideration.  A  minor,  even  a  child,  could  adopt  an  adult, 
the  object  in  this  case  not  being  the  succession  to  the  property  of 
the  family  but  the  proper  maintenance  of  the  family  worship. 
Under  the  present  code,  however,  the  person  adopted  must  be 
younger  than  the  adopter,  and  the  latter  cannot  be  a  minor.  Jap- 
anese family  law  undoubtedly  lays  far  greater  stress  on  the  im- 
portance of  adoption  than  is  found  among  western  peoples,  and  in 
so  far  as  the  German  law  has  modified  the  Roman  law  the  breach 
here  between  East  and  West  is  widened.  The  peculiarity  of  Jap- 
anese law  in  this  particular  is  due  to  the  religious  bias — worship  of 
ancestors  carried  on  by  male  descendants  only.  This  has  relegated 
woman  to  a  position  that  had  had  no  parallel  in  the  western  world.1 
In  the  Roman  world  the  woman  was  sacred  as  mother.  In  the 
barbarian  world  woman  was  sacred  as  wife.  If  man  did  not 
regard  the  dignity  of  her  position  as  the  mother  of  the  race  he  re- 
garded her  weakness,  and  on  that  ground  this  rough  society  threw 
over  her  its  protection.  In  the  Middle  Ages  she  was  a  valuable 
prize,  and  according  to  who  obtained  possession  of  her  often  went 
the  government  of  provinces.  In  all  cases  she  was  under  strict 
tutelage.  In  the  East  she  has  always  been  regarded  merely  as  a 
breeding  machine.  That  she  is  respected  as  parent  is  true.  In 
spite  of  her  motherhood  is  also  true.  As  daughter  she  is  subject 
to  her  father ;  as  wife  to  her  husband ;  as  mother  to  her  son ;  and 
this  for  ages  past  not  for  any  necessity  of  protection  but  simply  for 
reasons  of  sex.  For  this  reason  she  never  has  and  never  can  take 
her  position  with  man  until  she  is  made  his  companion.  How  the 


SHINANO    WAY  193 

Japanese  man  reconciles  his  mother's  womanhood  to  his  undoubted 
affection  for  her  is  probably  an  example  of  mental  acrobatics  only 
possible  to  eastern  casuistry.  But  after  all  the  world  is  ruled  at 
bottom  by  brute  force.  With  all  our  knowledge  of  the  germ  theory 
of  life,  that  we  are  as  much  our  mother  as  our  father,  woman 
holds  her  position  of  inferiority.  Must  hold  it  as  long  as  men's 
muscles  maintain  their  supremacy.  The  world  is  a  long  way  from 
beating  its  swords  into  ploughshares,  and  fortunately  or  unfor- 
tunately woman's  brains  do  not  march  pan  passu  with  her 
privileges. 

The  most  tedious  perhaps  of  railway  journeys  in  Japan  is 
the  ride  around  Tokyo  on  the  connecting  railway  between  Shina- 
gawa  and  Akabane.  Not  that  the  distance  is  great,  for  it  is  some- 
what less  than  fourteen  miles,  or  that  the  speed  is  abnormally  low 
for  the  amount  of  jolting  and  shaking  that  one  gets  creates  at 
least  the  impression  that  one  is  travelling  with  some  degree  of 
progress;  but  it  takes  an  hour  and  longer  to  cover  this  wretched 
distance  and  at  times  the  whole  system  seems  suspended,  the  plat- 
form bare  and  deserted  even  by  the  pedlars  of  tobacco,  news- 
papers, and  kwashi.  Anywhere  else  such  periods  of  waiting  are 
broken  by  the  arrival  of  the  train  from  the  opposite  direction.  But 
not  on  this  line.  Apparently  without  any  reason,  or  as  if  it  had 
become  tired  on  its  own  account,  the  engine  wakes  up  with  a  snort 
to  make  a  lazy  plunge  for  the  next  station  and  probably  to  repeat 
the  operation.  I  was  using  this  road  early  one  May  on  my  way  to 
Kofu  and  it  was  during  one  of  these  stops  that  a  little  plot  of  the 
ayame  or  early  Iris  caught  my  eye  jammed  in  between  the  squares 
of  the  paddy  fields.  Now,  on  a  preceding  fourth  of  May  at  a 
country  inn,  I  had  come  in  contact  with  "  Things  Japanese."  On 
entering  the  bath-room  I  found  the  tub  decorated  with  Iris  leaves, 
and  after  a  little  finessing  managed  to  draw  out  the  following 
explanation  which  can  be  taken  as  one  form  in  which  traditional 
ideas  and  superstitions  still  hang  on  in  spite  of  the  limelight  of 


194  SAKURAMBO 

science,  newspapers,  and  the  general  tendency  to  materialistic  ex- 
planation. 

In  Japan  as  in  most  other  countries  the  woman  works  in 
the  fields,  her  occupation  taking  her  into  the  hills  and  the  woods 
and  other  such  places  which  from  time  immemorial  have  been  sup- 
posed to  be  the  favourite  haunts  of  various  supernatural  beings. 
Japanese  gods  are  quite  as  frail  as  the  gods  of  the  ancient  Greeks, 
and  in  Japanese  folklore  the  story  of  Danse,  of  Lida,  and  of  Europa 
has  been  often  repeated  and  reproduced,  although  with  but  little  of 
the  charm  that  the  old  Greek  fancy  could  weave  about  its  legends. 
The  evidence  of  such  unexpectedly  inconvenient  honour  was  shown 
in  the  offspring,  and  the  children  carried  some  mark  of  their  super- 
natural origin,  such  as  excessive  hairiness,  great  size,  peculiarity 
of  facial  resemblance  fancied  or  otherwise,  to  some  animal  whose 
form  the  god  had  assumed  when  he  courted  his  victim.  In  this 
way  the  country  people  explained  the  many  pranks  that  Nature 
often  plays  on  man  in  his  offspring.  There  was  a  remedy,  how- 
ever, for  such  unsuspected  violations.  If  the  bath  was  decorated 
with  the  leaves  of  the  shobu  at  this  date  those  using  it  could  after- 
ward go  about  their  occupations  on  the  hillside  without  fear  of 
such  accidents  and  hedged  against  any  attempts  of  their  divinity- 
ships.  Tacked  onto  this  superstition  is  the  idea  that  the  shobu  leaf 
relieves  headache  and  by  binding  it  around  the  brows  this  unde- 
sirable adjunct  to  bad  nerves  or  bad  stomach  can  be  driven  away. 

A  jerk  of  the  train  and  all  ideas  as  to  Japanese  traditions  were 
quickly  dispelled.  None  of  the  Japanese  railroads  are  particu- 
larly distinguished  by  smoothness  of  roadbed  and  the  Tokyo  belt- 
line  is  no  exception,  although  not  so  bad  as  the  Northern  Railway. 
Incidentally  I  will  add  that  the  roughest  piece  of  roadway  I  have 
experienced,  akin  to  a  milk  shake  apparatus,  has  been  in  a  country 
noted  for  the  expense  and  solidity  of  its  railway  construction ;  but 
the  branch  line  running  from  Stratford  on  Avon  across  country 
and  passing  through  Towcester  can,  or  could,  equal  any  piece  of 
temporary  construction  work  put  together  even  in  the  States.  At 
the  time  I  speak  of,  this  Kofu  railway  was  only  in  operation  as  far 


SHINANO    WAY  195 

as  Saruhashi.  Although  the  line  was  a  continuous  one  at  Hachioji 
we  passed  off  the  rails  of  the  government  road  and  on  to  those  of  a 
private  corporation.  The  idea  of  a  traffic  arrangement  for  pas- 
sengers did  not  seem  to  have  entered  the  official  brain,  and  it  is 
pretty  safe  to  say  that  it  was  not  likely  to  do  so  spontaneously. 
At  all  events,  after  a  pretty  ride  over  the  Tokyo  plain  which  is 
always  picturesque  with  its  clumps  of  woodland  and  the  distant 
mountains,  wre  were  turned  out  for  another  long  wait  before  con- 
tinuing our  onward  progress.  The  mountains  are  now  close  at 
hand,  the  range  encircling  Fuji  to  the  north,  and  soon  after  leaving 
Hachioji  we  plunge  into  a  valley  gradually  narrowing  as  the  road 
progresses.  The  scenery  now  becomes  very  fine.  The  railway 
climbs  along  the  slopes  high  above  the  river  and  a  good  deal  of  tun- 
nelling is  necessary  to  negotiate  the  abrupter  section  of  the  gorge. 
Although  I  had  made  an  early  start  it  was  late  afternoon  before  I 
reached  Saruhashi,  a  picturesquely  situated  mountain  village.  One 
hears  much  of  fleas  in  Japan,  but  my  experiences  with  that  sprightly 
animal  have  been  few  and  far  between.  Saruhashi  tried  to  make 
up  the  deficiency,  and  here  he  swarmed,  and  the  picturesque  situ- 
ation of  the  inn  close  to  the  "  monkey  bridge  "  does  not  make  up 
for  this  drawback.  One's  attention  is  withdrawn  from  the  scenery 
to  go  flea  hunting,  a  too  absorbing  and  immediate  occupation  to 
admit  of  any  delay.  The  view  from  the  bridge  is  very  pretty. 
The  narrow  river  is  here  confined  between  perpendicular  walls 
relieved  by  much  green  vegetation.  The  name  probably  is  derived 
from  one  of  those  crazy  structures  of  bamboo  still  to  be  found  in 
the  mountain  districts  of  Japan  and  which  properly  seem  made  for 
monkeys  not  men.  I  was  kept  too  busy  to  thoroughly  enjoy  the 
hospitality  of  my  Boniface  and  was  glad  to  get  on  my  way  next 
morning.  It  was  ten  miles  to  the  Sasaotoge,  accomplished  by 
basha,  or  native  omnibus,  and  over  a  most  atrocious  road  which 
can  hardly  be  classed  as  passable  for  ricksha,  being  mainly  a  con- 
glomerate of  deep  ruts,  stones,  and  gulleys.  The  rougher  basha 
can  fight  its  way  through  this  stuff,  but  we  had  a  wretched  agent  of 
locomotion  in  a  poor,  starved,  overdriven,  tottering  horse  that  was 


196  SAKURAMBO 

just  able  to  maintain  its  footing.  One  does  not  have  to  go  far 
afield  to  get  illustrations  of  Japanese  brutality  towards  animals. 
And  the  curious  side  of  the  question  is  that  the  more  useful  the 
animal,  the  less  care  seems  to  be  taken  of  it.  The  dog  has  teeth 
and  some  disposition  to  use  them,  and  anyhow  has  a  strong  family 
resemblance  to  his  still  wild  relatives.  The  cat  is  a  rather  non- 
obtrusive  animal  that  calls  for  no  particular  attention  beyond 
some  daily  food.  The  dog  gets  more  attention  from  children, 
although  not  to  the  extent  that  is  lavished  on  him  in  the  western 
world.  His  acuteness  does  not  seem  to  have  attracted  notice  if 
one  can  judge  by  the  fables  in  which  he  plays  a  far  less  conspicuous 
and  benevolent  part  than  birds.  Cats  are  strictly  unpopular,  per- 
haps due  to  Buddhist  prejudice  against  them,  the  cat  being  the  only 
animal  that  did  not  mourn  the  Buddha's  death.  Their  useful  side, 
however,  is  recognized  and  they  are  at  least  let  alone  if  not  petted. 
The  horse,  however,  is  a  co-worker  with  the  coolie,  who  seems  to 
have  gotten  on  a  very  superficial  understanding  with  him.  They 
do  not  recognize  that  the  animal's  efficiency  and  duration — in 
general  terms,  his  usefulness — is  enhanced  by  good  treatment ;  that 
it  is  a  question  ot  economy  to  take  care  of  him.  The  scenes  wit- 
nessed on  the  Yokohama  hills,  when  the  unfortunate  brutes  zigzag 
up  the  slopes  hidden  under  their  staggering  loads,  are  due  strictly 
to  a  native  inherent  indifference  to  animal  suffering.  They  will 
not  eat  meat  on  religious  grounds,  and  will  drive  the  animal  until 
it  drops  of  exhaustion.  My  particular  Bucephalus  was  a  mass  of 
sores  wherever  his  Joseph's  coat  of  harness  touched  him,  for  it  was 
made  up  of  everything  from  iron  wire,  through  scraps  of  leather, 
up  or  down  to  pack  thread  doubled  and  twisted  many  times  to  make 
it  hang  together.  If  the  driver  or  betto  had  but  little  idea  of  the 
economical  usage  of  his  animal  he  had  a  keen  knowledge  of  its 
tender  points.  After  a  few  miles  the  poor  brute  stopped  of  exhaus- 
tion. He  was  then  assisted  along  for  another  hundred  yards  by 
inserting  a  strap  under  his  fetlock  and  giving  it  a  sharp  tug  much 
like  hitting  a  man  sharply  on  the  crazy  bone.  This  ingenious 
device  was  the  suggestion  of  a  passing  farmer.  Another  effective 


SHIXAXO    WAY  197 

spur  was  beating  him  at  his  sore  points.  It  was  all  done  in  perfect 
good  temper.  There  was  no  display  of  anger  or  ill  temper.  The 
horse  instead  of  being  a  mass  of  palpitating  feeling  flesh  might 
have  been  a  mechanical  contrivance  of  which  the  problem  was  to 
find  the  spring  that  moved  it.  Protests  merely  occasioned  a  trans- 
fer to  some  other  form  of  abuse,  the  acme  being  when  the  driver 
and  some  enthusiastic  assistants  among  the  wayfarers  gleefully  fell 
on  him  with  a  railway  tie  as  persuader.  We  walked  into  Kuronota 
thoroughly  disgusted  and  inwardly  vowed  to  take  any  means  of 
getting  out  of  the  district  than  basha.  A  society  for  the  prevention 
of  cruelty  to  animals  is  badly  needed  in  Japan,  but  its  work  would 
have  an  unusually  discouraging  basis  to  start  on,  for  the  only 
hope  of  success  would  be  by  appealing  to  the  argument  of  future 
economy  and  this  has  but  little  weight  with  the  Japanese  who 
lives  essentially  in  the  present.  It  is  a  steep  but  not  long  climb 
over  a  bad  road  to  the  top  of  the  pass.  The  view  from  the  sum- 
mit is  not  at  all  striking.  A  few  miles  down  brings  one  into  more 
picturesque  surroundings  and  hence  out  on  the  Kofu  plain.  All 
this  ride,  however,  is  no\v  obviated  by  the  extension  of  the  railway 
to  Kofu. 

The  Bosenkaku  at  Kofu  was  a  delightful  stopping  place  and 
one  of  the  best  examples  of  the  better  class  Japanese  inns.  Placed 
at  the  entrance  of  a  public  park  it  has  a  pretty  garden  of  its  own, 
the  inn  running  around  it  on  three  sides.  They  have  a  European 
scale  of  prices,  perhaps  because  Kofu  is  much  frequented  by 
tourist  foreigners  who  make  it  their  starting  point  for  the  trip 
down  the  Fujikawa.  While  stopping  here  I  had  an  opportunity  to 
try  some  of  the  local  vintage.  Kofu  is  a  noted  place  in  Japan  for 
grapes,  although  it  hardly  would  attract  attention  elsewhere.  The 
sample  brought  savoured  decidedly  of  the  unfermented  juice  and 
a  conspicuously  earthy  taste  found  in  the  lower  grades  of  Cali- 
fornia and  Australia  wines.  There  was  more  trouble  with  getting 
transportation  onward,  and  the  local  worthies  profited  to  the  full 
extent  of  the  necessities  of  their  prize.  I  referred  to  this  afterward 
on  my  return  and  I  was  told  by  Japanese  that  the  Kai-Shinano  dis- 


198  SAKURAMBO 

trict  was  rather  notorious  for  that  sort  of  thing.  From  ancient 
times  the  lower  classes  have  been  noted  for  their  roughness,  and  the 
floating  element  of  "  tough  "  hanging  just  on  and  outside  the 
pale  of  the  law  has  given  more  trouble  here  than  elsewhere.  In 
old  days  the  kidnapping  of  country  girls  and  forwarding  them  to 
the  Yoshiwara  of  Yedo  and  to  other  cities  was  a  profitable  busi- 
ness to  the  men  of  Kai.  It  was  good  that  I  got  off  early  the  next 
day,  for  my  men  were  the  very  reverse  of  energetic.  We  had  a 
long  day  before  us  and  they  practically  walked  the  sixteen  ri  (forty 
miles)  to  Kami-no-Suwa.  There  are  no  passes  on  the  way  and  the 
road  is  fairly  level  and  good.  The  scenery  is  pretty  but  decidedly 
commonplace.  It  is  a  great  silk  district  and  every  house  had  its 
women  hard  at  work.  It  is  those  skilful  little  fingers  of  the 
women  that  are  the  backbone  of  this  great  industry  and  of  many 
other  industries,  and  without  them  Japan  would  be  in  a  very  bad 
way  economically.  The  full  share  of  the  manual  labour  falls  on 
them.  There  is  a  good  deal  of  factory  life  through  the  district  and 
mills  are  a  feature  both  of  Kami-no-Suwa  and  Shimo-no-Suwa. 
In  the  old  days  all  this  work  used  to  be  carried  on  in  the  household, 
the  product  being  taken  to  the  middleman's  agent,  but  modern 
exigencies  have  wrought  this  great  and  unpleasant  difference,  for 
it  is  only  very  recently  that  the  Japanese  seem  to  have  worked  up 
to  the  fact  that  legislation  was  needed  to  protect  the  employees. 
Long  hours,  few  breaks  in  the  monotony  of  their  work, 'for  the 
Japanese  observation  of  a  weekly  rest  day  does  not  filter  down  to 
these  establishments,  and  wages  which  even  from  the  standpoint 
of  Japanese  living  are  trifling.  A  Japanese  coolie  at  thirty  sen  a 
day  is  from  his  standard  of  living — by  no  means  a  bad  one  in  food 
and  clothing — getting  a  dollar  and  quarter  a  day.  The  carpenter 
and  roofer  at  sixty  sen  a  day  are  far  more  than  doubling  the  rate 
for  the  list  of  superfluities  that  become  necessities  as  we  rise  in 
the  scale  is  but  little  extended  in  Japan.  The  old  influence  of  a 
certain  standard  for  each  separate  class  still  makes  itself  felt.  A 
woman  in  the  mills  of  Osaka  gets  ten  cents  a  day.  They  are 
housed  by  their  employers  and  the  recent  legislation  has  been 


SHIXAXO    WAY  199 

directed  to  regulating  the  abuse  of  this  feature  of  their  work  and 
enforcing  decent  regard  to  sanitary  conditions.  Men's  labour  is 
better  protected  through  their  guilds.  In  fact,  the  guild  is  to-day 
such  an  important  feature  of  Japanese  commercial  life  that  it  is 
quite  as  necessary  to  take  it  in  consideration  as  the  Government 
itself.  In  the  West,  with  its  individualizing  tendency,  the  guild 
has  gradually  been  eliminated,  although  the  latest  socialistic  doc- 
trines have  been  retrograding  to  the  form  in  fact  if  not  in  theory. 
The  East  has  carried  this  segregation  of  crafts  to  an  extreme,  even 
to  the  extent  of  appropriating  parts  of  town  and  city  to  the 
exercise  of  particular  forms  of  labour.  As  the  political  system 
eliminates  the  individual  and  deals  with  the  family,  so  the  economi- 
cal system  eliminates  the  individual  and  deals  with  the  guild. 
There  is  no  life  outside  of  the  guild,  hence  the  individual  must  bow 
to  its  orders  on  penalty  of  starvation.  The  Japanese  guilds  run 
through  the  whole  gamut  of  society  from  the  religious  formalities 
of  the  ancient  and  honourable  swordmakers  lost  in  the  mists  of 
time  up  to  the  most  complete  and  modern  Labour  or  Capital  Trust. 
Labour  has  always  worked  through  the  guilds  and  has  known  no 
other  way,  simply  because  the  political  and  religious  systems  have 
prevented  any  development  of  individualism.  In  the  face  of  mod- 
ern institutions  this  has  given  rise  to  a  curious  condition  of  affairs. 
As  disputes  between  individuals  are  settled  by  the  guilds,  so  dis- 
putes between  the  guilds  are  settled  by  arbitration,  and  although 
the  courts  are  in  full  operation  bold  is  the  man  who  in  either  case 
appeals  to  them  without  the  sanction  of  the  guild.  Cases  are 
notorious  where  foreigners  in  dealing  with  Japanese  have  carried 
their  case  successfully  through  the  devious  and  irritating  channel 
of  Japanese  litigation  to  be  met  with  the  dictum  of  the  guild, 
"  Accept  an  arrangement,  thus  and  so,  or  close  business  with  the 
guild."  which  of  course  means  cease  business  in  Japan.  There 
are  plenty  of  examples  in  western  commercial  life  where  pressure 
of  a  kind  is  put  on  the  smaller  fry  by  the  great  corporations ;  where 
a  man  is  driven  out  of  business  by  ruthless  competition  or  by  the 
more  underhand  method  of  threatening  his  customers'  business  if 


200  SAKURAMBO 

they  continue  to  deal  with  him.  These  we  recognize  and  try  to 
reach  in  every  way  possible  to  the  lawmaker  and  against  the 
lawbreaker.  I  doubt  very  much,  however,  if  there  is  any  corpora- 
tion in  America  so  great  that  it  would  dare  to  send  notice  to  a 
successful  litigant  that  he  must  settle  the  case  as  decided  by  them, 
without  reference  to  the  court's  decision,  or  cease  dealing  with 
them.  Such  contempt  of  court  would  receive  drastic  punishment. 
They  might  try  and  frame  a  way  to  avoid  the  court's  decision  or 
wriggle  out  of  it  as  best  they  could,  but  on  the  face  their  submission 
would  be  absolute,  and  they  would  pay  for  any  rash  misinter- 
pretation they  put  on  such  decision.  In  the  guilds  we  meet  also 
with  another  feature  which  accents  the  radical  difference  between 
East  and  West.  In  the  West  while  their  basis  was  communistic, 
their  action  was  mainly  political.  Under  the  western  trade  guilds 
the  plebs  make  their  appearance  in  the  political  life  of  Rome. 
Although  under  the  crushing  power  of  the  emperors  the  collegia 
and  sodalitia  have  but  little  power,  still  the  main  object  is 
protection  against  outside  encroachment  on  the  rights  of  their 
members.  Their  object  is  not  purely  social.  On  the  fall  of 
the  western  empire  they  were  probably  the  only  means  of 
protection  to  the  lower  classes  in  the  frightful  confusion  that 
followed  that  fall,  and  the  disintegration  of  any  organized  opposi- 
tion to  the  floods  of  barbarians  pouring  over  Italy.  And  it  is  these 
organizations  that  in  a  political  sense  first  raise  their  head  against 
the  oppression  of  the  feudal  system.  Their  object  always  is  trade 
and  its  advancement,  but  this  they  are  always  seeking  to  grasp  by 
means  of  the  political  power,  so  that  in  the  thirteenth  century 
we  find  the  most  powerful  of  the  powers  dividing  Italy  to  be  a 
Commune  of  Guilds — Florence.  The  inherent  right  of  a  man 
to  guide  his  own  destiny,  the  democratic  germ  of  modern  Europe, 
has  always  lain  within  the  wrappings  of  these  guilds  from  the 
earliest  times  of  western  life.  To  be  sure,  in  recent  times  the 
formation  of  the  great  labour  and  capital  trusts  have  modified  this 
sentiment,  and  the  tendency  of  the  leaders  of  both  has  been  to  split 
our  western  communities  into^a  congeries  of  interests  where  the 


SHIXAXO    WAY  201 

circles  touch  each  other  but  are  not  concentric.  The  labour  leaders 
have  abandoned  the  old  struggle  for  freedom,  which  has  been  car- 
ried on  through  centuries  and  at  the  cost  of  so  much  effort  and 
bloodshed.  The  right  of  a  man  to  earn  his  daily  bread  in  the  way 
he  finds  best  suited  to  him  is  to  be  transposed  into  the  right  of  a 
man  to  work  if  the  labour  leader  chooses  to  let  him  work.  Xo 
new  features  are  introduced  into  the  scheme.  Limitation  of  the 
number  of  apprentices  admitted  to  the  guild,  and  limitation  of  the 
output  of  work  and  hence  the  creation  of  an  artificial  demand. 
We  seem  to  be  returning  to  the  old  days  when  the  guilds  ruled  the 
corporation  of  London  with  this  difference,  that  the  guilds  of  those 
days  made  the  good  quality  of  their  products  a  great  object  and 
punished  severely  bad  work,  whereas  the  present  guilds  are  directed 
to  protecting  the  bad  work  at  the  expense  of  good  work.  The 
western  world  seems  to  hesitate  at  present  as  to  whether  the  indi- 
vidualization  has  been  carried  too  far;  as  to  whether  the  weaker 
guilds  (the  labour  unions)  are  not  to  be  supported  against  the 
stronger  guilds  (the  capitalists).  The  people  are  likely  in  time, 
however,  to  find  the  balance,  as  they  have  often  done  before.  Evo- 
lution does  not  work  backward.  Even  if  Nature  staggers  around 
a  little  trying  to  get  its  footing  and  producing  some  freaks  in  the 
process.  It  is  much  easier  to  be  controlled  by  many  with  their 
various  distracting  interests,  than  to  be  under  the  guiding  will  of 
a  single  despot  always  at  hand  and  with  his  whole  attention  con- 
centrated on  a  limited  space  to  crush  out  any  individualism  that 
might  arise.  Individualism  is  too  ground  into  the  western  mind 
and  this  return  to  the  guild  system  carries  the  seeds  of  its  death 
within  it.  The  Capitalist  Trust,  the  most  vulnerable  of  the  two,  is 
always  subject  to  the  will  of  the  majority.  The  Labour  Trust 
by  its  very  victory  over  Capital  would  dissolve.  Its  cause  for 
existence  would  be  cut  away  from  under  it.  The  Japanese  guild 
does  not  bother — as  yet — about  the  political  side  of  the  question. 
Individualism  with  its  free  man  and  free  mind  has  no  place  in 
Japanese  Absolutism.  The  guild  has  no  relations  with  external  or 
internal  politics,  but  it  has  a  very  drastic  control  over  its  members. 


202  SAKURAMBO 

and  in  this  it  has  the  Government  support,  which  finds  it  easier  to 
deal  with  and  hold  responsible  the  heads  of  the  guilds  than  to 
deal  with  and  hold  responsible  the  individual  units.  Just  how  far 
they  are  laying  up  for  themselves  trouble  in  the  future  by  nourish- 
ing this  imperium  in  imperio  will  only  appear  when  the  guilds  make 
their  step  forward  into  politics.  The  control  of  the  guilds  is  a 
very  important  matter,  and  the  men  who  gain  that  control  direct 
the  lives  of  many  of  their  fellow  citizens  as  a  living  is  not  possible 
outside  of  them. 

It  was  dark  before  I  started  down  the  hill  above  Kami-no- 
Suwa.  This  is  the  nearest  approach  to  a  pass  on  the  whole  stretch 
from  Kofu  north  to  the  Nakasendo.  The  inn  at  Kami-no-Suwa 
was  a  big  commercial  house  with  a  beautiful  garden,  and  from 
my  room  aloft  I  had  a  full  sweep  over  the  country  toward  the 
lake  beyond,  and  just  below  my  eyes  the  ground  plan  of  the  afore- 
said garden  as  seen  from  above.  We  were  nearly  "  full  up,"  and 
the  evening  was  well  advanced  before  the  police  book  and  supper 
came  around.  The  inn  people  were  invaluable  in  the  ensuing 
struggle  with  the  ricksha  men.  It  was  not  advisable  to  press  mat- 
ters too  far  with  them  for  they  could  refuse  to  go  beyOnd  the 
mountain  village  of  Wada,  where  it  was  undetermined  whether 
other  ricksha  were  to  be  found  or  not.  I  found  out,  however,  from 
the  inn  people  that  I  could  get  out  of  the  district  without  troubling 
myself  about  ricksha  men  farther  than  a  little  town  called  Shiojiri, 
and  in  fact,  if  it  had  been  convenient,  basha  was  available  all  the 
way  from  Kami-no-Suwa.  To  Shiojiri  therefore  I  departed  the 
next  morning,  a  pretty  ride  around  the  head  of  the  lake  and  over 
a  good  road.  I  say  a  good  road  for  the  ricksha  men  chose  to  take 
a  short  cut  over  a  very  bad  one.  After  giving  them  ample  oppor- 
tunity to  earn  their  "peculium  "  I  clambered  up  the  last  hundred 
yards  of  the  hill,  leaving  them  to  shoulder  the  ricksha  for  progress 
on  wheels  was  impossible.  The  inn  at  Shiojiri  was  a  pretty  little 
place,  a  matter  of  some  importance,  for  it  lies  on  the  Nakasendo 
road,  which  is  one  of  the  show  routes  for  scenery  in  Japan.  On 
foot  is  a  charming  way  to  go  through  the  country,  but  it  must  be 


SHINANO    WAY  203 

understood  that  there  are  limitations  to  putting  it  into  practice. 
For  a  party  of  young  foreigners  to  go  through  the  CQuntry  in  this 
way,  as  so  many  do  through  Switzerland  and  the  Black  Forest,  for 
instance,  would  arouse  the  wildest  suspicion  in  the  eyes  of  the 
native,  and  they  would  quickly  find  themselves  being  held  up  and 
questioned  by  the  police  to  their  no  small  annoyance.  Where  the 
use  of  a  camera  even  in  the  streets  of  Shimonoseki  gives  no  end  of 
trouble,  and  involves  at  least  the  forfeiture  of  the  instrument,  it  can 
be  imagined  that  sketching  and  photographing  through  the  moun- 
tains even  in  permitted  districts  is  sure  to  arouse  the  suspicions  of 
the  local  Cerberus,  who  has  large  ideas  as  to  his  responsibilities  and 
the  full  inclination  to  confiscate  first  and  determine  the  legal  bear- 
ing of  the  question  afterward.  The  foreign  traveller  desired  in 
Japan  is  he  who  is  accompanied  by  a  native  guide  to  carefully  take 
him  over  the  frequented  routes,  and  where  no  new  responsibilities 
are  dumped  on  some  official,  who  finds  himself  presented  with  a 
case  not  covered  by  that  part  of  the  rules  which  are  familiar  to 
him  and  relieve  him  of  the  trouble  of  thinking.  The  foreign  resi- 
dent also  gives  but  little  trouble.  He  usually  speaks  more  or  less 
of  the  language,  and  has  business  connections  which  quickly  estab- 
lish him  as  a  responsible  person  and  within  reach  at  all  times  and 
seasons.  In  such  a  fortified  camp  as  Europe  the  military  authori- 
ties only  trouble  themselves  about  fortified  neighbourhoods,  and 
what  the  native  is  allowed  to  sketch  or  photograph,  the  same  privi- 
lege is  extended  to  the  stranger;  in  Japan  such  zones  are  ex- 
tremely liberal,  and — to  make  a  sort  of  bull  \vhich  fits  the  situation 
however — where  it  is  allowed  it  is  safer  first  to  get  permission, 
even  if  it  be  the  photographing  of  some  harmless  and  battered 
Buddha  surrounded  by  dirt  and  children  and  in  the  confined  lanes 
of  a  crowded  city  where  there  are  certainly  no  strategic  features 
except  to  the  eye  of  the  official.  In  Japanese  eyes  everybody  is  a 
spy.  In  this  they  imply  no  discredit.  It  is  their  own  general 
practice,  and  what  they  do  themselves  they  naturally  expect  other 
people  to  do.  There  is  none  of  that  instinctive  repugnance  which 
the  practice  arouses  in  the  western  mind  and  which  only  the  neces- 


204  SAKURAMB6 

sity  of  occasion  sanctions.  With  us  the  personality  of  the  indi- 
vidual is  his  own  concern,  and  we  hesitate  to  intrude  on  it  except 
in  so  far  as  is  agreeable  to  him.  Hence  but  little  attention  is  paid 
to  a  man's  actions  in  so  far  as  there  is  no  special  reason.  To  the 
Japanese  there  is  no  such  thing  as  privacy.  They  live  in  public, 
their  individuality  is  crushed  out  by  every  custom  that  can  be 
brought  to  bear  on  it,  they  have  never  gotten  beyond  the  com- 
munal stage  even  in  their  home  life.  For  a  Japanese  girl  or  boy, 
or  even  for  a  man  or  woman,  to  have  a  room  to  retire  to  as  their 
own,  sacred  against  the  intrusion  of  others,  is  unknown.  There 
are  no  doors,  no  locks,  paper  screens  only  through  which  a  whisper 
can  be  heard  from  one  room  to  another.  Where,  after  the  futons 
are  rolled  up  and  stowed  away  for  the  day,  the  whole  establish- 
ment is  thrown  into  one  big  common  room  for  the  whole  household, 
where  one's  most  private  life  is  carried  on  therefore  "  corani  pub- 
lico  "  from  their  first  appearance,  any  such  feeling  of  individualism 
as  the  West  feels  toward  spying  is  not  blunted  but  simply  is  unde- 
veloped. There  is  one  feature  of  this  trait  that  soon  attracts  the 
attention  of  the  westerner.  That  is  the  intensely  personal  ques- 
tions that  are  asked  by  his  casual  eastern  acquaintance,  and  which 
are  usually  set  down  to  the  "  custom  of  the  country,"  the  interest 
that  is  supposed  to  be  polite  by  taking  in  the  well-being  of  the 
stranger.  In  part,  it  may  be  formula  or  has  become  formula,  but 
at  bottom  these  questions  have  little  to  do  with  politeness.  They 
are  part  of  the  general  system  of  being  able  to  answer  as  far  as 
possible  as  to  everything  that  can  be  gleaned  from  the  stranger. 
This  is  in  part  due  to  the  nature  of  the  relation  between  the  govern- 
ing powers  and  the  governed,  the  method  employed  being  that  of 
holding  a  man  responsible  for  his  neighbour.  The  system  of 
local  government  is  better  considered  elsewhere,  but  one  feature  of 
such  responsibility  has  been  the  development  of  just  this  form  of 
underhand  inquisition.  It  is  analogous  to  the  position  of  the 
teacher  who  encourages  tale-bearing  among  his  pupils.  It  has 
indeed  grown  second  nature  with  this  people  who  are  held  in  a  kind 
of  tutelage  by  their  officials.  In  this  sense  it  is  often  relieved  from 


SHIXAXO    WAY  205 

that  form  of  impertinence  of  which  the  shining  example  in  western 
literature  is  "  Paul  Pry."  But  not  seldom  your  kind  inquiring 
acquaintance  will  march  off  to  the  police  box  adjacent,  with  his 
information,  retailing  it  with  a  directness  and  gesture  in  your  direc- 
tion which  at  least  shows  a  sense  of  amusing  guilelessness.  Polite- 
ness certainly  has  little  to  do  with  many  instances.  Apart  from 
the  little  irritation  it  arouses  in  the  western  mind,  the  practice 
does  not  work  to  the  injury  of  any  foreigner  with  legitimate  pur- 
poses, and,  as  I  have  said  before,  it  adds  perceptibly  to  the  safety 
of  journeying  through  unfrequented  by-roads  and  through  iso- 
lated districts.  But  enough  has  been  said  as  to  the  "  politeness  of 
the  habit." 

It  is  worth  going  into  this  question  of  Japanese  politeness, 
for  it  is  an  excellent  instance  as  to  the  effect  of  an  iron  code 
on  a  people,  which,  originally  purely  disciplinary,  has  effected  a 
change  in  the  intimate  nature  of  the  people  themselves.  Let  it 
be  understood  that  the  old  code  of  etiquette  in  Japan  was  in  no 
way  intended  as  a  school  for  politeness.  It  was  to  mark  off  caste 
from  caste,  the  low  man  from  his  superior.  It  was  not  enough  to 
mark  the  separation  by  occupation  and  increased  privileges  in  the 
community,  but  the  distinction  must  always  be  employed  wherever 
the  two  castes  come  in  contact.  When  the  greater  lord  and  his 
train  met  the  lesser,  the  latter  must  draw  to  the  side  of  the  road 
and  respectfully  wait  for  him  to  pass.  When  the  clown  met  his 
superior  on  his  travels,  he  must  crouch  in  the  ditch  with  his  face 
to  the  ground  so  as  to  avoid  even  the  pollution  of  his  glance  to 
meet  the  cortege.  One  caste  was  not  allowed  to  ignore  the  pres- 
ence of  the  other  caste.  The  formulas  were  to  be  obeyed.  No 
samurai  was  to  be  censured  for  cutting  down  a  peasant  who 
had  failed  in  respect  to  him.  Now  this  respect  was  based  in  first 
instance  not  on  any  moral  code  but  on  authority,  and  as  consid- 
eration for  those  below  by  no  means  increases  as  we  go  down  the 
scale,  the  lower  classes  would  receive  but  little  relief  from  pressure 
of  those  more  immediately  in  authority  over  them.  The  kick  that 
is  handed  down  from  the  top  is  always  passed  on  with  a  little 


206  SAKURAMBO 

interest,  and  the  last  man  probably  kicks  the  dog.  Another  feature 
is  that  there  is  absolutely  nothing  democratic  in  the  constitution 
of  the  Japanese  people.  Their  organizations  have  been  purely  for 
trade.  Politics  were  not  only  foreign  to  their  purpose  but  were 
absolutely  forbidden  them.  Hence  the  lower  class  Japanese  got  a 
full  dose  of  authority,  and  such  authority  took  care  not  to  let  them 
forget  by  ceaselessly  putting  before  their  eyes  the  practice  of  it  on 
the  peril  of  the  most  severe  punishment — at  times  even  death — 
tf  they  failed  in  any  particular.  Under  such  training  it  was  that 
the  Japanese  nation  learned  to  be  polite.  Polite  to  all  above  him, 
polite  to  his  equals,  for  as  his  government  lay  in  the  hands  of  his 
superiors  so  it  was  an  offence  to  trouble  that  superior  with  their 
petty  quarrels.  Woe  to  the  man  who  gave  rise  to  some  such 
disturbance  on  frivolous  grounds.  It  was  not  only  the  law  of  the 
land  that  was  offended  but  the  magistrate  himself,  and  it  was  "  the 
rule  of  the  Cadi,"  round  measure  did  one  or  sometimes  both  of 
the  litigants  receive.  Now  this  submission  was  not  so  difficult  to 
force  on  the  people  inasmuch  as  the  ground  had  already  been 
broken  for  it  by  the  existing  religious  code  which  made  obedience 
to  superiors  a  cardinal  feature  of  such  code.  The  Japanese  peasant 
is  ordinarily  very  religious,  and  in  no  way  wishes  to  do  anything 
that  would  offend  or  arouse  the  anger  of  the  gods.  And  he  car- 
ries this  out  in  the  very  practical  way  of  prayers  and  contribu- 
tions. Anyone  who  spends  a  little  time  in  the  grounds  of  some 
temple  will  note  the  large  number  of  worshippers  that  come  in  this 
private  manner  to  make  their  petitions  to  the  divine  power.  They 
are  of  all  grades  of  society,  poor  and  rich,  cotton  and  silk,  men 
and  women,  and  many  young  girls,  and  to  pray  for  much  the  same 
things  as  they  do  in  far-off  Europe.  The  safe  return  of  a  son, 
for  a  male  child  in  an  approaching  delivery,  or  for  an  obi  or  sash. 
Seated  beside  some  little  rural  temple  it  is  noticeable,  the  large 
proportion  of  the  passersby  who  stop  for  a  few  minutes  to  offer 
up  a  prayer.  Submissive  to  authority  as  a  right,  reinforced  by  sub- 
mission to  authority  as  a  duty,  has  made  attention  to  the  little  de- 
tails of  human  intercourse  a  second  nature  to  a  class  of  people 


SHINANO    WAY  207 

whose  daily  life  in  close  contact  to  and  struggle  with  the  soil  would 
give  but  little  occasion  for  such  niceties,  and  which  in  other  ways, 
in  indifference  to  human  suffering,  or  in  cruel  treatment  of  animals, 
and  in  practice  of  the  grossest  superstitions,  shows  its  rougher 
nature  and  the  usual  effects  of  such  contact.  This  harsh  and  exact- 
ing treatment  has  indeed  made  the  mass  of  the  Japanese  a  polite 
people.  There  is  an  instinctive  feeling  when  brought  in  contact 
with  it  that  it  is  not  sincere,  a  feeling  that  the  person  practising 
it  is  using  a  code  and  is  not  speaking  from  the  heart.  It  is  not, 
however,  the  superficial  politeness  of  the  French,  all  smiles  and 
bows  while  the  wind  sits  in  the  right  corner.  Let  conditions 
change  and  the  Gallic  storm  is  let  loose  with  a  range  and  boule- 
vcrsement  that  staggers  the  onlooker  from  the  colder  and  more 
self-contained  North.  The  Japanese  rarely  lose  control  of  them- 
selves. They  can  be  as  cold,  harsh,  malicious,  and  unforgiving 
toward  each  other  as  any  race  that  has  ever  been  planted  on  that 
trifling  little  planet  Terra.  I  have  chanced  upon  but  one  physical 
encounter  in  public  and  that  turned  out  to  be  between  Chinamen, 
who,  far  from  being  a  pacific  race  individually,  have  the  reputation 
of  fighting  "  at  the  drop  of  a  hat."  Yakamashii  (noisy)  is  a  term 
of  reproach  among  the  Japanese.  When  their  quarrels  do  reach 
the  point  of  violence  they  too  often  end  in  the  Quarter  Sessions 
Court,  not  the  magistrate's  office.  Feuds  will  go  on  in  this  way 
smouldering  until  the  community  is  startled  some  day  with  the 
wholesale  slaughter  of  a  whole  household,  the  original  difference 
having  started  over  some  trifling  matter  that  English  or  Americans 
would  have  settled  with  a  few-  stiff  punches.  There  is  another 
feature  in  connection  with  Japanese  politeness  and  that  is  the  trans- 
lation of  their  honorifics.  The  honorific  O  is  translated  "  honour- 
able," this  being  its  proper  meaning  and  often  so  used  in  our  sense 
of  the  term;  but  one  feels,  living  among  the  Japanese,  that  as 
used  in  common  life — anything  from  O  Ichi  San,  "  Honourable 
Miss  First/'  to  O  Ncko  San,  "  Honourable  Mr.  Cat," — it  is  purely 
conventional.  It  is  in  no  sense  a  title,  as  when  we  speak  of  the 
Honourable  Mr.  X,  member  of  Congress  or  of  Parliament.  Every 


208  SAKURAMBO 

gesture  and  tone  of  the  voice  show  that  it  has  become  a  customary 
expression,  and  Oide  and  Goran  nasai  are  simply  used  in  the  sense 
of  "  come  here,  please  "  and  "  look,  please."  The  honorific  abso- 
lutely disappears  in  Ohayo,  "  honourably  early,"  which  is  "  good 
morning,"  and  nothing  else. 

A  foreign  style  basha — that  is,  with  seats — took  me  the  few 
miles  that  still  remained  between  Shiojiri  and  the  terminus  of  the 
railway  at  Matsumoto.  This  is  a  large  ugly  Japanese  town  beauti- 
fully situated  at  the  head  of  the  picturesque  valley  which  practically 
runs  south  all  the  way  to  Kofu.  The  mountain  wall  of  Hida  rises 
to  the  westward  and  it  is  cut  off  on  the  east  from  the  valley  of 
Nagano  and  the  Chikumagawa  by  another  lofty  range.  The 
railway  was  still  very  new  to  Matsumoto  and  the  station  had  quite 
a  crowd  of  townspeople  and  countrymen  around  it  engaged  in 
watching  the  shifting  of  the  cars  and  other  operations  novel  to 
many  of  them.  After  leaving  Matsumoto  the  railway  soon  entered 
the  hills,  winding  around  among  the  valleys  here  not  presenting 
the  trim  rice-fields  and  other  features  of  farm  life  so  common  in 
Japanese  scenery,  but  that  of  a  sparsely  settled  district  and  a  good 
deal  of  wild  nature  such  as  you  see  winding  among  the  foothills  of 
the  coast  range  in  California.  These  hills  grew  higher  and  more 
rugged,  and  after  some  fine  gorge  scenery  we  plunged  into  a  tunnel 
to  find  on  the  other  side  one  of  the  striking  views  of  Japan.  The 
whole  broad  Nagano  valley  lay  far  below  at  our  feet,  with  the 
mountains  of  Kotsuke  towering  up  in  front  on  the  other  side. 
It  was  a  beautiful  scene  of  exquisite  cultivation  and  rugged  nature 
grandly  harmonized ;  of  brilliant  light  with  shadows  cast  by  cloud 
and  mountain;  and  the  Japanese  rice-fields  are  always  pleasing, 
broken  here  and  there  by  graceful  clumps  of  trees  shrouding  some 
shrine  or  giving  shade  to  some  farmhouse.  We  were  in  such  close 
quarters  here  on  the  mountain  that  a  curve  was  out  of  the  question, 
so  reversing  the  train  by  a  V  turn  we  were  backed  down  and 
gradually  were  brought  to  the  valley  level  into  the  midst  of  this 
rich  land  which  had  been  stretched  under  our  eyes  during  the 
descent.  As  everywhere  else,  it  is  the  land  and  those  that  live  on 


SHIXAXO    WAY  209 

it  that  are  the  backbone  of  the  Japanese  nation,  and,  as  if  recog- 
nizing that  the  people  who  own  the  soil  are  those  having  the 
greatest  stake  in  it,  the  Government  in  so  far  as  it  allows  any  voice 
in  public  affairs  has  always  favoured  the  agriculturist.  These 
farms  sprinkled  over  Japan  therefore  answer  the  question  as  to 
what  are  these  country  people?  How  have  they  lived  and  how 
do  they  live?  How  is  their  property  regulated  and  distributed? 
We  all  know  what  interest  a  stout  old  farmhouse  presents  in  our 
own  home  landscape.  A  house  which  has  weathered  generations 
of  change,  not  as  in  cities  accompanied  by  the  rise  and  fall  of  men's 
fortunes  in  the  ephemeral  forms  of  created  wealth  changing  not 
only  with  men's  needs  but  with  men's  habits,  but  in  that  solid 
permanency  attached  to  the  soil  and  which  is  an  inherent  quality  of 
"  landed  property."  The  farmer  in  Japan  always  has  been  a 
person  of  some  consideration.  Even  in  recent  feudal  days  he  was 
ranked  next  to  the  samurai,  although  far  below  him,  being  the  first 
in  rank  of  the  people,  followed  by  the  artisan  class,  and  lowest  of 
all  the  merchant  class.  Below  the  latter  were  the  outcasts  and  the 
etas,  who  were  officially  without  standing  as  men  at  all  being 
known  as  Jiinin  or  "  not  men."  The  position  of  the  peasant  in 
the  early  days  has  already  been  mentioned.  The  form  in  which 
property  was  held  followed  much  the  history  of  the  class.  The 
number  of  the  true  yeoman  class  who  owned  their  property  in  their 
own  right,  "  freehold,''  so  to  speak,  diminished  almost  to  a  vanish- 
ing quantity,  and  for  the  same  reasons  as  in  Europe  at  a  much 
earlier  period,  namely,  the  necessity  of  seeking  protection  of  the 
strong  against  the  outrages  of  the  times  when  there  was  no  public 
law  and  no  government  to  whom  to  appeal.  Landed  property 
therefore  passed  into  a  few  hands  in  exchange  for  the  protection 
afforded  to  its  original  owners,  and  the  lord's  castle  represented 
the  same  idea  in  Japan  in  1868  as  it  had  in  France  or  in  fact  in 
Europe  (except  England)  up  to  the  outbreak  of  the  French  Revo- 
lution and  the  triumph  and  spread  of  its  principles.  A  purely 
feudal  tenure  in  Europe  lapsed  with  the  death  of  the  holder  and 
had  to  be  renewed.  Convenience,  and  in  some  cases  necessity, 
14 


210  SAKURAMBO 

brought  it  about  that  in  time  custom  made  such  tenures  hereditary 
in  the  family  of  the  tenant.     That  is,  the  title  to  property  so  passed 
practically  returned  to  the  original  holder  subject  to  certain  duties 
thereto  attached.     These  duties  were  paid  either  in  personal  service 
or  in  taxes  of  money  or  kind.     Subject  to  restrictions — more  or 
less   severe   according  to   the   helplessness   of   the   underling   or 
tyranny  of  the  overlord — a  man's  heirs  inherited  his  property  sub- 
ject to  the  same  duties.     The  overlord  being  the  State,  he  occupied 
the  position  it  does  to-day  with  some  added  drastic  provisions, 
for  he  became  the  heir  in  cases  where  heirs  were  lacking,  or  were 
foreigners,  or  where  defects  had  vitiated  the  holder's  use.     This 
last  was  the  most  irritating  feature  of  such  land  held  under  feudal 
tenure  even  where  so  modified  by  custom  as  to  imply  heirship,  for 
such  regulations  were  often  vexatiously  minute  and  of  course  all 
in  favour  of  the  overlord,  who  in  addition  to  being  a  party  to  any 
dispute  that  would  arise  was  judge  of  his  own  case.     When  there- 
fore times  became  more  settled,  it  is  seen  that  the  land  has  practi- 
cally become  divided  between  the  Church   and  the  barons,   and 
original  freeholders  were  few  and  far  between  and  in  such  few 
cases  strictly  affiliated  with  the  noble  class.     In  Europe  the  great 
free  cities  or  corporations  arose,  but  these  latter  find  no  represen- 
tation in  Japan.     Land  was  now  largely  held  and  worked  by  the 
people  at  large  under  the  form  of  ground  rent  or  of  simple  lease. 
The  first  was  strictly  hereditable  and  the  holder  in  those  days  was 
protected  in  his  rights  against  every  one  but  his  lord,  and  the 
peasantry  would  occupy  from  generation  to  generation  the  same 
farmstead.     The  duties  had  mainly  been  converted  into  taxes  of 
money  and  kind  but  labour  in  the  form  of  the  corvee  or  its  equiva- 
lent was  still  required  from  the  peasantry.     Since  the  French  Revo- 
lution even  the  form  of  forced  labour  has  been  removed,  although 
permission  is  given  to  the  rural  holder  in  some  countries  to  work 
out  his  road  taxes  instead  of  paying  money.     The  State  having 
now  assumed  the  position  of  the  feudal  baron,  all  relations  between 
the  owner  of  the  land  and  the  user  of  it  have  now  entirely  dis- 
appeared, and  the  relation  between  them  has  assumed  a  purely 


SHIXAXO    WAY 

commercial  aspect.  Some  remnants  recently  did  exist  in  English 
legislation  enforcing  the  old  reversionary  rights  of  the  landlord  as 
in  the  case  of  copyhold  for  one  or  more  lives. 

The  land  in  Japan  went  through  the  same  cycle  of  evolution. 
There  were,  however,  in  the  old  times  of  these  villages,  and  entirely 
apart  from  any  harshness  or  exactions  of  the  lord  of  the  soil, 
obligations  and  restraints  fastened  on  the  inhabitants  that  have 
made  their  effects  felt  to  this  day  in  their  habits  and  business  rela- 
tions. Some  of  the  original  forms  still  survive  in  out  of  the  way 
places,  as  in  public  notices  that  frugality  is  to  be  practised  in  the 
village  for  the  coming  year.  And  perhaps  the  lax  idea  of  contract 
found  in  so  many  phases  all  through  everyday  Japanese  life  can 
be  attributed  to  these  former  customs.  The  life  was  strictly  a  life 
t)f  the  community.  Nothing  could  be  done  without  the  knowledge 
and  consent  of  the  community.  A  lease  or  sale  of  house  or  ground 
required  the  consent  of  family  and  neighbours  as  attested  by  their 
seals  to  the  document.  In  many  villages  sale  of  land  was  abso- 
lutely forbidden  under  any  condition.  In  other  cases  this  prohibi- 
tion existed  but  was  evaded  by  a  sort  of  perpetual  lease  clause  by 
which  the  vendor  or  his  heirs  could  always  step  in  and  repurchase 
after  a  certain  number  of  years.  Particularly  in  towns  there  was 
often  a  proviso  that  the  lease  of  a  house  must  first  be  submitted  to 
neighbours,  and  then,  if  they  consented  to  the  presence  of  the 
newcomer,  the  lease  became  valid.  And  beyond  all  was  the  un- 
comfortable position  of  the  bankrupt  debtor;  the  man  who  failed 
to  fulfil  his  obligations.  "We  can  understand  something  of  the 
tenderness  shown  by  Japanese  courts  to  the  debtor  when  we  appre- 
ciate the  latter's  condition.  In  fact,  the  professional  money-lender 
—on  interest — found  small  favour.  The  orders  for  a  private  settle- 
ment of  money  disputes,  payment  on  instalment  extending  over 
long  terms  of  years,  the  ready  acceptance  of  excuse  for  non-pay- 
ment provided  it  was  shown  that  an  honest  endeavour  had  been 
made  to  meet  the  debt,  the  issuance  from  time  to  time  of  private 
settlement  orders  which  were  really  statutes  of  limitation  abolishing 
all  debts  previous  to  the  proclamation,  emphasize  this  position  of  the 


SAKURAMBO 

debtor.  The  bankrupt  was  a  marked  man.  He  lost  caste.  He  was 
in  most  places  deprived  of  all  voice  in  village  or  town  affairs,  some- 
times for  life.  His  descendants  could  not  hold  certain  offices  for 
several  generations.  He  was  forbidden  to  use  an  haori,  or  outside 
coat,  on  any  occasion,  or  to  use  a  rain  hat.  In  some  extreme  cases 
he  was  driven  from  the  place  and  a  hut  erected  on  waste  land  nearby 
in  which  he  must  dwell.  There  were  entire  settlements  of  such 
broken-down  men,  on  the  outskirts  of  large  villages.  At  best  he 
either  entered  the  family  of  a  relative  as  a  subordinate,  or  his 
family  took  care  of  wife  and  children  while  he  was  exiled  or  lived 
this  degraded  separate  life.  Bankruptcy  therefore  involved  not  only 
loss  of  goods  but  grave  social  and  political  penalties,  and  the  Court 
properly  took  great  care  in  forcing  matters  to  'an  extremity.  The 
whole  system  must  have  reacted  very  strongly  on  the  body  politic 
in  cramping  enterprise,  for  the  capitalist  would  be  timid  in  advanc- 
ing money  for  new  enterprises,  or  he  would  cover  losses  by  high 
interest  rates,  and  this  seems  to  have  been  the  case  as  the  many 
laws  against  usury  show.  Responsibility,  however,  was  wide  and 
the  endorsing  seal  of  the  village  authorities  in  many  cases  made 
them,  or  even  the  village,  responsible  for  the  debt  contracted. 

When  the  central  government  replaced  the  daimyo  govern- 
ment, the  yeoman  farmer  or  goshi  had  practically  disappeared.  He 
•was  rara  avis  or  rather,  as  great  landholder,  amalgamated  with 
the  noble  classes.  The  land  was  held  by  the  peasants  under 
ground-rent  or  lease.  It  passed  by  regular  law  of  succession  with 
the  same  reversionary  rules  in  case  of  failure  on  the  part  of  the 
leaseholder,  and  the  same  defect  that  the  lord  became  judge  in  any 
cause  of  dispute  which  arose  between  him  and  his  peasantry.  One 
can  understand  therefore  that  the  revolution  and  the  transfer  to  the 
central  government  was  by  no  means  the  shock  to  the  whole 
economic  system  that  at  first  sight  appears.  The  central  govern- 
ment took  the  place  of  the  daimyo  just  as  in  France,  Republic 
displaced  Empire,  or  vice  versa.  Not  a  peasant  was  ousted  from 
his  holding.  He  paid  his  rent  to  the  government  tax  office  instead 
of  to  the  lord's  steward,  and  he  gained  infinitely  by  the  change  inas- 


SHIXAXO    WAY 

much  as  the  landlord  was  now  the  community,  and  he  knew  that 
the  taxes  were  levied  for  actual  purposes  of  government,  and  not 
to  support  the  extravagances  of  some  faineant  in  Yedo.  While 
theoretically  the  Government  is  the  real  owner  of  all  the  land,  the 
title  rests  in  the  registered  holder  of  the  land  who  has  all  the  power 
now  of  using  it  and  devising  it  found  in  western  legislation  of  the 
most  recent  date,  and  subject  only  to  the  general  impost  and  taxa- 
tion and  to  the  laws  of  succession.  In  the  same  way  these  many 
country  villages  that  the  traveller  passes  in  his  journeys  have 
changed  their  basis  of  government  with  as  little  friction  as  the 
change  of  ownership  of  the  land.  The  ancient  system  has  prac- 
tically been  continued  in  its  outer  form  to  the  present  day,  the 
changes  being  superficial  and  in  the  direction  of  centralization. 
The  responsibility  of  the  family  for  its  members  has  largely  dis- 
appeared, and  in  so  far  a  movement  has  been  made  in  the  direction 
of  individuality.  Division  of  small  groups  of  houses  with  a  re- 
sponsible chief,  further  groupings  into  wards,  into  districts,  and 
into  still  larger  divisions  for  representation  in  a  general  council. 
The  basis  of  all  these  councils  is  wealth,  not  manhood  suffrage. 
A  man  must  have  reached  a  certain  age — twenty-five  years — must 
pay  a  certain  proportion  of  national  tax,  must  fulfil  certain  per- 
sonal qualifications  as  to  character,  and  must  not  be  of  the  official 
class.  A  person  disqualified  by  conviction  under  the  penal  code 
or  a  bankrupt  cannot  be  an  elector.  Great  attention  is  paid  to 
form,  and  the  various  systems  of  registrations  fixing  a  man's 
status  are  very  complete.  They  are  practically  a  police  provision, 
and,  accounting  for  every  individual  in  a  household,  much  simplify 
police  work.  Property  qualification  to  be  an  elector  do  not  stop 
simply  at  the  statement  of  tax  paid.  The  list  of  electors  is  divided 
according  to  tax  paid  by  them.  The  wealthier  interests  represent- 
ing one-half  the  tax  assessment  of  the  place  elect  half  the  council 
members,  the  balance  of  the  electors  choose  the  other  half  of  the 
council.  The  elections  are  arranged  so  that  half  the  council  is 
renewed  at  each  election,  thereby  constituting  a  permanent  body. 
The  body  so  formed  possesses  functions  not  very  different  from 


SAKURAMBO 

those  found  in  western  communities.  They  regulate  their  village 
affairs,  and  it  falls  on  them  to  distribute  the  taxes  assessed  against 
the  commune.  Their  decisions,  however,  are  subject  to  appeal  to 
the  sub-prefect  and  prefect  of  the  arrondissement  or  province,  who 
can  also  check  them  up  on  his  own  initiative.  Hence  they  are 
brought  into  direct  contact  with  the  central  government  which  has 
constant  watch  over  their  actions.  Their  head,  the  mayor,  holds 
a  double  relation  in  this  respect,  for  while  he  is  the  executive  of  the 
council  to  carry  out  their  regulations  and  is  elected  by  them,  he  is 
also  the  representative  of  the  Government  which  transmits  its  will 
through  him  not  as  mayor  but  as  its  local  representative,  whether 
in  relation  to  acts  of  the  council  or  to  general  acts  which  are  to 
be  promulgated.  It  can  be  seen  that  the  only  change  in  village 
political  life  here  lies  in  this  limited  suffrage  for  the  election  of  the 
council,  and  which  although  much  restricted  in  its  operation,  car- 
ries a  germ  of  individualism  in  its  recognition  of  interest  as 
separate  from  the  family. 

Politics  therefore  are -not  such  as  to  create  a  furor  on  such 
ground  as  this  and  the  village  life  passes  as  tranquilly  and  much  as 
in  our  own  country  villages.  Work  in  the  field  all  day  and  at  night- 
fall the  home-coming.  The  women,  when  they  do  not  work  side  by 
side  with  the  men,  are  employed  in  household  duties,  spinning  silk, 
drying  grain,  washing  vegetables  for  market,  and  other  such  duties 
to  add  to  the  exchequer.  The  hours  of  work  over,  there  is  a  good 
deal  of  mutual  "  dropping  in  "  to  each  other's  houses,  general 
gossip  in  which  the  local  scandal  is  pretty  thoroughly  thrashed  out 
in  a  country  where  nothing  can  be  kept  secret,  and  story-telling  for 
which  the  Japanese  have  a  great  attraction  and  a  deserved  reputa- 
tion, practice  in  this  and  in  making  little  poems  having  reached 
much  farther  down  into  the  social  strata  than  in  the  busier  West. 
In  public  their  main  amusements  are  the  temple  fairs  or  matsuri. 
Here  there  is  a  marked  difference  from  western  life.  They  have 
indeed  in  Japan  days  of  public  holiday,  such  as  the  accession  and 
death  of  Jimmu  Tenno,  the  first  Emperor  and  the  birthday  of  the 
present  Emperor;  generally  observed  but  without  those  public 


SHIXAXO    WAY  215 

meetings,  reviews,  and  display  customary  in  the  West  on  the  great 
national  holidays.  They  have  no  place  set  aside  for  sports.  The 
Japanese  boy  and  young  man  tramps  the  country,  has  a  name  for 
every  flower  and  insect,  but  knows  nothing  of  base-ball  leagues 
and  cricket  clubs.  The  village  green  is  absolutely  lacking  as  a 
feature  of  Japanese  village  life.  The  Japanese  are  still  back  in  the 
Middle  Ages,  where  every  amusement  had  its  being  in  the  church 
life,  and  where  the  feast  days  and  saints'  days  marked  the  fairs  and 
the  miracle  plays.  So  their  life  is  centred  in  the  temple  to  which 
every  Japanese  has  the  peculiar  relation  of  uji  ko  or  adopted  child, 
having  been  placed  under  the  guardian  care  of  the  divinity  in  his 
babyhood,  and  these  temple  celebrations  are  entered  into  with  a 
zest  enhanced  by  its  peculiar  relation  to  the  worshippers.  These 
celebrations  take  many  forms,  from  the  monthly  fair  wliich  is 
mainly  important  to  a  host  of  small  pedlars  who  spread  their  wares 
out  to  the  public  gaze,  to  elaborate  ceremonials  which  have  their 
representatives  in  the  harvest  festivals  still  practised  in  many  parts 
of  Europe,  and  of  which  some  remnants  remain  in  England  and 
America,  where,  however,  they  have  lost  all  religious  signification. 
These  brown  thatched  roofs  have  much  of  interest  under  them, 
and  perhaps  some  day  a  Japanese  Balzac  or  Scott  or  Dickens  will 
arise  to  tell  their  story  to  the  world.  A  short  run  across  the  plain 
brought  the  big  city  of  Nagano  into  view,  and  soon  I  was  enjoying 
the  well-meant  if  somewhat  unkempt  hospitality  of  the  local 
*'  hotel." 

Once  more  I  paid  a  visit  to  the  great  Zenkoji  temple.  This 
time  the  grounds  were  not  crowded  with  the  pilgrims  and  their 
dirty  white  robes.  The  rosary  and  charm  shops  seemed  more 
open  for  form's  sake  and  Ojisan  was  gossiping  with  his  neighbour 
or  his  newspaper  with  apparently  any  thought  in  his  mind  but  his 
spiritually  valuable  wares.  Then  I  took  my  wray  through  the  long 
street  of  inns  and  shops  to  the  railway  station.  It  was  noon  before 
we  were  moving  down  the  beautiful  Chickumagawa  valley,  and 
evening  by  the  time  the  slopes  of  Asamayama  were  reached  and  the 
sacred  portals  of  the  Chautauqua  of  Japan.  \Ye  remember  how 


216  SAKURAMBO 

Daudet  describes  his  return  to  Tarascon  and  the  shock  of  fear  that 
made  him  shiver  when  its  spires  and  white  walls  came  suddenly 
in  sight.  Now  for  some  reason  foreigners  in  Japan  seem  to  be 
divided  into  the  ringstreaked  and  spotted  and  the  unspotted,  the 
sheep  and  the  goats.  The  missionaries  on  the  one  hand  and  "  the 
rest  "  on  the  other  hand.  There  is  of  course  a  radical  difference 
between  the  two  flocks  as  to  who  are  the  sheep  and  who  are  the 
goats,  a  point  on  which  no  compromise  seems  possible.  Hence  it 
is  that  the  stranger  wanders  into  the  fold  of  either  very  much  as  in 
days  of  old  he  approached  some  baron's  castle,  somewhat  uncer- 
tain as  to  whether  he  was  to  be  consigned  to  the  oblivion  of  the 
wine  cup  or  of  the  oubliette.  At  Karuizawa,  however,  the  stranger 
has  no  such  experiences  and  has  excellent  hotels.  There  is  no 
"  committee  "  on  hand  to  inspect  credentials  and  to  cast  the  un- 
worthy into  outer  darkness  again.  No  Excourbanies  with  his 
"  Fen  de  Brut — let's  make  a  noise."  The  rightful  owners  had  not 
emigrated  however.  It  is  the  season  of  the  locust  at  Karuizawa 
and  the  locust  had  not  yet  arrived.  This  little  town,  with  its  spruce 
new  and  ugly  little  houses  set  out  on  the  scrub-covered  plain,  repre- 
sents a  question  of  the  East — not  so  much  of  Japan,  for  in  this 
sturdy  little  nation  it  is  a  mere  exotic.  For  one  of  the  mooted 
questions  of  profit  and  loss  to  these  nations  in  their  contact  with 
western  civilization  is  the  missionary.  The  charges  brought 
against  the  missionary  propaganda  in  the  East,  and  by  men  who 
certainly  should  be  qualified  to  know  more  about  the  question  than 
those  living  on  the  other  side  of  the  globe,  ranges  from  its  useful- 
ness in  an  economic  point  of  view  to  simple  diatribes  against  the 
character  and  methods  of  the  men  who  carry  it  on.  There  are 
about  two  hundred  thousand  Christians  in  Japan  and  it  is  charged 
with  much  show  of  truth  that  the  amount  of  money  spent  is  utterly 
out  of  proportion  to  such  meagre  results;  that  the  suffering  and 
distress  that  is  found  at  home  calls  for  relief,  and  it  is  a  strange 
bias  to  give  religion  to  overlook  the  misery  at  one's  doors  and  to 
relieve  it  under  such  distant  conditions.  The  usual  answer  made 
seems  to  be  grounded  somewhat  on  the  indisputable  fact  that  large 


SHINAXO    WAY  217 

numbers  of  people  at  home  do  neglect  their  plain  duty,  which,  if 
they  carried  it  out,  would  much  diminish  such  suffering,  and  that 
those  who  feel  it  their  call  to  work  in  foreign  lands  are  not  to  be 
held  responsible  for  such  dereliction  of  others  or  to  be  called  on 
to  take  their  places.  The  suffering  and  helpless  at  home  seem,  we 
might  conclude,  to  be  caught  between  the  upper  and  nether  mill- 
stone in  this  case.  Those  who  contribute  to  foreign  missions 
certainly  have  a  right  to  say  in  what  direction  they  shall  turn  their 
charity.  They  claim  it  is  their  concern.  Criticism  and  answer 
seem  both  to  be  firmly  grounded  in  their  opposite  camps.  A  more 
serious  charge,  however  made,  is  that  of  insincerity.  The  state- 
ment that  men  on  the  ground  know  the  real  condition  of  affairs, 
know  that  the  net  returns  do  not  warrant  the  money  that  is  poured 
into  these  eastern  countries,  and  could  much  better  be  spent  at  home. 
Xow  it  seems  to  me  that  in  this  case  the  professional  enthusiasm  is 
not  sufficiently  taken  into  account.  The  outsider  can  far  more 
accurately  gauge  the  progress  of  the  battle  than  the  man  who  is 
engaged  in  it.  The  missionary  in  the  thick  of  a  fight,  in  which,  to 
his  honour  be  it  said,  in  the  vast  majority  of  cases  he  is  engaged 
heart  and  soul,  is  very  likely  to  look  at  his  triumphs  through  a 
microscope.  He  is  struggling  against  great  odds,  not  only  in- 
herent in  the  situation  itself,  but  without  the  assistance  or  against 
the  implied  ill  will  of  those  he  feels  should  be  among  his  supporters. 
For  it  is  a  curious  fact  how  universally  they  apply  the  saying,  "  he 
who  is  not  for  me  is  against  me." 

Xow  the  heat  of  controversy  is  likely  to  make  every  \veapon 
at  hand  useful,  and  only  on  this  ground  can  be  explained  some  of 
the  statements  we  hear  made  by  missionaries  from  western  pulpits. 
\Ye  hear  much  of  benighted  heathen,  worship  of  frightful  gods,  and 
ignorance.  At  this  very  day  the  western  papers  are  full  of  ser- 
mons and  letters  of  this  character,  and  of  which  Japan  is  the  subject 
and  in  which  the  picture  is  drawn  from  such  statements  of  men 
who  know  the  exaggeration  of  the  portrait.  Men  who  live  in  the 
East  know  that  the  priesthood  of  the  eastern  religions  contains  men 
as  learned  as  any  we  have  in  the  West;  they  know  that  the  dis- 


218  SAKURAMBO 

torted  countenance  of  Emma  O  and  of  the  Nyo  before  the  temples 
is  an  artistic  conception  as  familiar  to  these  eastern  peoples  as  any 
statue  of  the  saints  to  a  western  man;  and  they  know  that  igno- 
rance and  superstition  are  quite  as  rife  in  Italy,  in  Spain,  in  Russia, 
as  in  Japan.  You  never  hear  from  the  western  pulpit  of  the 
learned  priest  or  the  accomplished  gentleman.  You  do  hear  a 
lot  of  stone  idols,  and  of  worship  of  dogs  and  cows,  as  if  these  were 
the  essentials  of  the  eastern  religions;  and  as  if  Lourdes  and 
Loretto,  and  the  worship  of  images  and  of  old  Roman  gods  under 
the  thin  disguise  of  harvest  festivals,  were  never  heard  of  in  western 
theology.  This  is  plain  misrepresentation  and  not  overscrupulous 
at  that. 

Another  charge  of  misrepresentation  brought  against  the  mis- 
sionaries is  their  exaggeration  of  the  conditions  under  which  they 
live,  and  which  are  at  least  as  pleasant  as  any  they  would  be  entitled 
to  at  home.  That  can  hardly  be  called  exile  which  men  voluntarily 
seek.  Many  people  living  in  the  East  return  home,  but  many  of 
them  find  "  exile  "  so  agreeable  that  they  soon  drop  back  again. 
People  living  in  China  usually  speak  well  of  it,  and  people  living 
in  Japan  are  living  under  conditions  that  are  so  pleasant  that  to 
many  they  counterbalance  the  charms  of  western  life,  the  music, 
the  beautiful  art  of  the  West,  the  gay  complex  outdoor  life  of 
Continental  Europe.  The  average  of  chances  must  be  taken,  and 
such  average,  for  instance,  in  the  United  States  would  land  a  man 
in  some  small  inland  town  where  amusements  are  slight  and 
interest  very  circumscribed.  It  is  certainly  not  a  bad  exchange 
for  such  a  man  to  find  himself  in  a  country  town  in  Japan,  where 
the  people  in  their  daily  life  present  a  perfect  kaleidoscope  of 
physical  and  mental  colour  strange  to  his  eyes.  Add  to  this  the 
fact  that  one  dollar  in  America  is  worth  three  dollars  in  a  Japanese 
country  town.  I  have  in  mind  a  case  where  the  minister  of  a  little 
parish  received  the  munificent  salary  of  two  hundred  and  ninety 
dollars  a  year  together  with  an  occasional  barrel  of  apples  and  a 
bag  of  flour  from  his  wealthier  parishioners.  On  this  he  and  his 
family  were  supposed  to  get  along  for  the  year,  and  it  can  be  added 


SHIXAXO    WAY  219 

that  his  receipts  in  kind  were  fairly  balanced  by  the  calls  made 
on  his  little  store  by  his  more  needy  parishioners.  Such  a  man 
•certainly  would  not  find  himself  badly  off  in  Japan.  Statements 
so  often  made  as  to  eastern  learning  and  living  could  well  stand 
much  qualification.  With  charges  of  ignorance  of  the  language 
•of  the  people  they  come  to  teach,  and  general  overbearing  manners 
in  their  relations  to  the  community,  I  think  few  will  agree.  Fresh 
timber  sent  out  from  home  is  of  course  ignorant  of  the  language, 
and  often  displays  an  overconfidence  in  abilities  and  anything 
but  humility  toward  the  task  of  raising  the  naked  savages  to 
whose  regeneration  they  propose  to  devote  themselves.  This, 
however,  is  quite  as  often  found  among  other  than  missionary 
recruits.  As  a  matter  of  fact  the  missionaries  are  better  qualified 
to  speak  on  this  question  of  language  than  the  large  majority  of 
secular  foreigners  living  in  Japan,  many  of  whom  content  them- 
selves with  learning  enough  for  daily  use  and  leave  the  rest  to 
a  ban  to.  The  missionary,  however,  must  learn  the  language  for  a 
widely  extended  sphere.  It  is  his  means  of  usefulness.  As  to 
rudeness,  there  are  black  sheep  in  every  flock,  but  I  think  most 
travellers  will  endorse  the  statement  that  they  have  always  received 
kindness  and  courtesy  from  the  missionary  section  whenever  they 
have  had  occasion  to  apply  for  their  assistance. 

It  is  an  undoubted  fact,  however,  that  the  general  feeling  of 
resident  foreigners  in  the  East  is  hostile  to  the  missionary  estab- 
lishment. The  preceding  grounds  are  very  general.  Perhaps 
stronger  reasons  can  be  found  in  the  opposition  of  the  missionaries 
themselves  to  foreign  traders.  They  openly  denounce  their  influ- 
ence on  their  flock  and  try  by  every  means — presumably  legitimate 
— to  reserve  the  field  for  themselves.  Instances  of  this  elsewhere 
are  familiar  enough,  in  Hawaii  and  at  present  in  Samoa.  The 
Mission  Boards  are  very  powerful  bodies,  and  making  their  influ- 
ence felt  in  this  way  it  is  no  wonder  that  they  arouse  hostility  in 
powerful  commercial  interests  whose  object  is  to  carry  trade  every- 
where with  small  reference  to  the  good  or  evil  of  the  native.  In 
addition  there  is  among  the  western  Germanic  nations  a  distinctly 


220  SAKURAMBO 

hostile  feeling  to  priest  government  or  influence.  They  have  freed 
themselves  from  it  at  home  with  great  cost  of  blood,  and  would 
stamp  it  out  everywhere  if  they  had  the  power.  One  of  the  most 
valuable  means  of  influence  that  the  missionary  possesses  is  his 
personal  influence  over  his  parishioners  in  their  homes.  It  is 
noticeable  that  the  nationals  of  countries  in  which  the  Protestant 
creeds  are  predominant  show  their  hostility  more  than  those  from 
countries  in  which  the  Roman  Church  is  the  predominant  form  of 
worship.  The  latter  rarely  offer  open  criticism  to  their  own 
missions,  no  matter  how  openly  they  may  express  themselves  as  to 
mission  work  in  general.  It  seems  to  me  that  there  is  another 
influence,  or  rather  a  lack  of  it,  also  at  work.  A  man  naturally 
pays  deference  to  his  surroundings  no  matter  whether  he  agrees  or 
not  with  the  majority.  In  the  East  the  free  thinker  or  indifferent- 
ist  has  no  such  surroundings  that  would  arouse  sympathy  even  in 
the  absence  of  belief.  The  church  around  which  a  man's  life  has 
centred,  and  beneath  whose  shadow  his  parents  perhaps  lie  buried, 
always  stands  as  a  landmark  in  his  life's  journey.  In  the  East 
it  is  the  pagoda  not  the  spire  that  points  heavenward.  It  is  his 
material  present  not  the  shadowy  past  that  he  has  under  his  eyes. 

The  relations  between  missionaries  and  other  resident  foreign- 
ers are,  however,  of  but  little  moment  as  compared  with  the  really 
important  question  of  the  relation  between  the  missionaries  and  the 
native.  In  the  past  ages  of  the  world's  history,  religion  and 
politics  have  gone  close  hand  in  hand.  There  have  been  more  wars 
based  on  religious  pretexts  than  on  any  other  grounds,  and  it  is 
only  since  the  French  Revolution  and  the  era  of  colonial  expansion 
that  wars  on  purely  political  grounds  have  had  their  being.  Guelph 
and  Ghibelline,  Catholic  and  Huguenot,  England,  Holland  and  the 
Protestant  princes  of  Germany  against  Spain,  all  have  made  religion 
a  pretext  of  their  alliances  with  or  their  encroachments  on  each 
other.  Now  the  religious  spirit  is  just  as  much  alive  to-day  as  it  ever 
was,  only  it  has  widened  its  range  of  toleration.  The  great  bulk 
of  mankind  have  not  yet  reached  a  point  where  broad  general  ethical 
rules  can  satisfy  them.  They  must  have  something  very  concrete  on 


SHINAXO    WAY 

which  to  hold.  Hence  toleration  is  only  found  within  the  confines 
of  a  religious  creed.  The  Jesuits  in  China  when  they  found  them- 
selves confronted  with  a  cult  so  strikingly  like  that  left  at  home 
in  precept  and  ritual  did  not  attribute  the  likeness  to  certain  quali- 
ties of  thought  inherent  in  the  human  mind  and  seeking  the  same 
external  form  of  expression,  but  could  only  attribute  the  likeness 
to  the  machination  of  the  devil  for  the  deceiving  of  mankind.  Re- 
ligion could  spring  from  but  one  source,  hence  all  outside  forms 
must  be  heretical.  By  the  free  use  of  kicks  and  cuffs  the  nations 
of  Europe  have  to  some  extent  convinced  each  other  that  "  God/' 
"  Gott,"  "  Dios,"  "  Dieu,"  are  fair  equivalents  for  the  same  idea. 
\Yhether  the  "s#C«  "  of  the  Russian  Church  implies  the  same  is 
somewhat  to  be  doubted  if  their  attitude  toward  other  Christian 
sects  is  any  indication.  When,  however,  we  come  to  Mahomet 
and  the  sons  of  Mahomet,  or  to  the  gentle  religion  of  Buddha,  or 
the  lofty  ideals  of  esoteric  Brahmanism,  the  only  terms  of  peace  are 
extinction.  No  convertible  terms,  no  international  exchange  ex- 
ists. Difference  in  language  symbols  implies  difference  in  ideas. 
The  Protestant  may  find  a  cloak  of  charity  to  cover  the  hosts  of 
Saints,  national,  international,  and  local,  of  his  Catholic  brother. 
At  least  they  can  be  held  to  be  holy  men  and  women  deserving  of 
praise,  if  not  of  worship.  The  saintly  followers  of  Buddha,  how- 
ever, are  per  se  representative  of  the  fiend  himself,  snares  to  entrap 
men.  and  their  holy  lives  but  one  of  the  devil's  lures  to  entice 
men  into  them. 

The  statesmen  of  the  western  world  were  not  long  in  finding 
out  the  use  of  the  missionary  spirit  inherent  in  every  religion. 
For  ages  the  flag  of  commerce  has  followed  the  Cross.  Not  that 
this  has  ever  pleased  the  ecclesiastical  authorities  engaged  in  the 
propaganda  of  the  faith.  The  Jesuits  of  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth 
century  saw  with  just  as  little  pleasure  the  descent  of  mercantile 
Europe  on  China  and  Japan  as  the  Hawaiian  missionaries  did 
the  influx  of  the  haole  or  European  in  the  nineteenth,  and  as  the 
missionaries  in  Samoa  oppose  the  extension  of  European  contact 
with  the  native  in  this  twentieth  centurv.  But  the  ecclesiastics  of 


222  SAKURAMBO 

the  West  were  never  willing  to  forego  the  support  of  their  home 
power,  to  become  a  part  of  the  population.  The  religion  they 
wished  to  implant  was  the  religion  of  the  West,  and  they  had  no 
intention  of  leaving  its  interpretation  to  inexperienced  neophytes. 
Now  our  western  religions  are  not  a  Napoleonic  code  laid  down  on 
certain  strict  principles.  They  are  a  growth  and  a  compromise 
with  much  that  has  preceded  them.  The  missionary  in  the  East, 
however,  was,  and  is,  confronted  with  a  situation  which  in  his  eyes 
admits  of  no  compromise.  It  would  not  have  been  an  insuperable 
matter  to  replace  the  coarse  nature  worship  by  a  more  idealized  con- 
ception of  divinity.  Nature  worship,  however,  is  only  a  part  and 
not  the  most  important  part  of  religion  as  it  has  developed  in 
China  and  Japan.  The  main  basis  on  which  all  religious  feeling 
exists  is  ancestor  worship.  A  tie,  be  it  observed,  that  affects  the 
family  not  the  individual,  and  on  which  the  whole  economic  struct- 
ure involving  property  has  been  built.  Of  course  time  had  built 
around  this  family  altar  a  number  of  rites  and  observances,  and  it 
has  always  been  a  nice  point  as  to  how  far  the  convert  could  join 
in  such  acts  without  peril  to  his  soul.  The  early  Jesuits,  who  had  a 
very  considerable  knowledge  of  the  workings  of  the  mind  of  the 
native  and  his  methods  of  thought,  approached  this  subject  in  what 
seems  the  most  rational  manner.  Seeking  the  essentials  and  leav- 
ing to  time  the  elimination  of  the  last  traces  of  any  religious  mean- 
ing attached  to  the  ancestral  tablets.  This  course  has  not  been 
followed,  however,  even  by  their  own  co-religionists,  and  all  the 
Christian  bodies  are  agreed  that  no  compromise  is  possible  on  that 
point,  that  the  native  is  not  to  be  trusted  to  excise  the  religious 
element  in  his  observance  before  the  ihai.  Now  as  all  the  members 
of  the  family  owre  certain  religious  duties  to  these  ancestral  tablets 
and  contribution  to  the  support  of  the  family  worship,  and  as  these 
duties  form  part  of  the  legal  code,  it  can  be  seen  that  the  missionary 
is  soon  brought  into  contact  with  the  law  of  the  land.  He  has 
reduced  not  only  the  whole  family  to  disorder  but  has  introduced 
disorder  into  the  wider  circle  of  the  governing  power.  To  this 
of  course  he  has  no  objection.  He  falls  back  on  the  authority  that 


SHINAXO    WAY 

Christianity  brought  "  not  peace  into  the  world,  but  a  sword." 
The  greater  the  disturbance  the  more  likely  he  is  to  profit,  and  the 
connection  between  gunboats  and  missionaries  has  been  by  no 
means  an  exceptional  feature  in  China  where  he  is  a  person  outside 
the  law  of  the  land,  qualified  to  interfere  in  it  but  not  subject  to  it. 
In  Japan,  wrhere  gunboats  and  collisions  with  the  Government  are 
not  possible,  it  is  fair  to  presume  that  the  radical  stand  in  regard 
to  the  ancestral  tablets  has  had  great  effect.  Certainly  if  the 
headship  of  a  family  fell  by  the  law  of  succession  to  a  Christian 
he  would  be  in  a  dilemma.  Besides,  his  Christianity  in  itself  carries 
a  dilemma  with  it.  The  Japanese  are  a  very  tolerant  people — as  yet, 
They  care  very  little  as  to  whether  their  neighbour  has  consorted 
with  strange  gods  or  not.  But  the  gratuitous  insult  to  all  their  best 
and  most  sacred  feelings  such  as  is  involved  in  the  destruction  of 
the  ihai  is  more  than  they  can  stand,  and  involves  to  the  individual 
the  most  savage  ostracism.  To  them  it  is  as  if  one  insulted  "  the 
Host  "  in  a  Catholic  country. 

The  Japanese,  if  sincere,  should  make  splendid  ground  to 
work  upon.  As  has  been  Said,  he  is  not  irreligious  but  on  the  con- 
trary his  realism  as  to  divinity  is  carried  to  the  extreme.  By  the 
beliefs  of  his  childhood  the  gods  and  the  dead  are  constant  com- 
panions, sharing  the  good  things  of  this  earth  with  the  living  and 
haunting  its  favoured  spots.  You  rarely  see  carelessness  of  pose 
and  manner  during  the  act  of  devotion.  As  man,  woman,  or  child, 
clap  their  hands  before  the  temple  the  previously  careless  manner 
becomes  one  of  great  absorption.  There  is  often  a  touch  of  feeling 
where  its  presence  would  not  be  suspected.  It  is  not  uncommon 
to  see  a  workman  at  his  bench,  a  coolie  walking  beside  the  road, 
break  into  an  impassioned  soliloquy  or  into  some  old  song,  abso- 
lutely losing  himself  in  impersonation.  Recitation  is  a  favourite 
form  of  entertainment  with  them  and  few  are  those  who  have  not  a 
whole  store  of  old  legends  and  folklore  tales  at  their  tongues'  end. 
But  if  he  has  deep  feeling  he  has  also  deep  craft,  and  often  very 
little  scruple.  Many  of  the  English-speaking  girls  found  in  the 
brothels  of  the  open  ports  have  been  sent  to  the  missionary  school 


SAKURAMBO 

with  the  specific  object  of  thus  enhancing  their  value  by  this 
accomplishment.  The  native  church  gives  no  end  of  anxiety.  A 
thinking,  earnest  people,  they  naturally  object  to  being  held  in  lead- 
ing strings,  and  as  naturally  the  foreign  boards  are  disinclined  to 
turn  over  to  them  large  funds  left  for  a  specific  purpose  by  the 
donors,  and  which  in  the  hands  of  the  native  race  are  just  as  likely 
in  the  end  to  be  devoted  to  supporting  dogmas  trying  to  reconcile 
belief  east  and  west,  as  to  maintaining  to  the  last  gasp  the  damna- 
tion of  infants  and  such  other  mortals  who  did  not  happen  to  agree 
with  the  Geneva  Sage.  It  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  historical 
Christianity  would  appeal  but  little  to  the  Japanese.  There  can  be 
none  of  the  appeals  to  the  glorious  part  the  Church  has  played  in 
the  past,  and  the  vicarious  association  by  such  connection  with  such 
a  past.  The  only  appeal  to  the  Japanese  can  be  to  his  mind  or  to 
his  interest.  In  the  days  of  old  when  the  Jesuits  first  came  to 
Japan  they  were  in  the  midst  of  the  feudal  ages  when  the  people 
body  and  soul  were  pretty  much  the  property  of  the  prince.  These 
astute  practitioners  quickly  grasped  that  point  familiar  to  them  in 
other  fields,  and  hence  their  first  efforts  were  directed  to  making 
converts  among  the  ruling  classes.  Such  dragooning  while  not 
very  edifying  had  a  great  effect  on  the  census  but  also  a  great  effect 
on  their  future.  The  great  triumvirate — Nobunaga,  Hideyoshi, 
lyeyasu — plainly  looked  on  Christianity  in  a  purely  political  light. 
Buddhism  had  already  given  great  trouble  in  the  land.  In  a  relig- 
ious sense  Christianity  could  be  a  very  convenient  makeweight 
against  the  pretensions  of  the  older  religion.  But  as  soon  as 
Christianity  threatened  to  become  a  question  of  politics  through 
its  relation  with  the  daimyo — which  connection  seems  more  to 
have  been  anticipated  from  its  known  history  which  had  reached 
the  ears  of  Hideyoshi  and  lyeyasu,  rather  than  any  real  attempt  to 
play  a  part  in  the  politics  of  the  country — they  stamped  it  out 
relentlessly  and  thoroughly,  not  to  reappear  until  Perry's  fleet  again 
opened  the  land  to  the  West.  Modern  missionary  effort  has  no 
dragooning  methods  at  its  back,  and  its  present  efforts  seem  to  the 
outsiders  rather  to  have  been  hampered  in  the  nature  of  a  shock  to 


SHINANO    WAY  225 

the  prejudices  of  what  at  bottom  is  a  highly  emotional  people. 

That  the  propaganda  of  modern  Christianity  carries  with  it 
germs  of  great  advantage  to  the  future  of  Japan  I  think  will  be 
admitted  by  most  of  those  who  have  seen  the  present  application  of 
foreign  civilization  on  their  new  ground.  It  has,  and  will  materially 
alter  the  status  of  the  Japanese  woman  from  that  of  a  breeding 
machine  to  become  the  helpmate  and  the  complement  of  man.  It 
has,  and  will  greatly  influence  the  organization  of  charity  toward 
assisting  the  needy  classes.  The  Japanese  under  their  old  system 
never  developed  relief  work  as  it  has  developed  strictly  under  the 
brotherhood  idea  fostered  essentially  by  Christianity.  The  needy 
members  of  a  family  fell  to  the  care  of  the  better  situated  of  their 
kin,  but  in  many  cases  it  is  evident  that  there  would  here  occur 
examples  of  general  misfortune  that  were  not  reached.  This 
limiting  the  sense  of  responsibility  within  the  family  narrowed 
its  development  materially.  Only  in  cases  of  general  peril,  where 
the  bread-winners  were  away  fighting  for  the  common  weal,  would 
the  community's  feeling  of  brotherhood  be  aroused  in  the  sense 
that  makes  it  in  the  West  the  duty  of  the  State  to  look  after  its 
needy  members.  There  is  a  change  in  Japanese  thought  in  this 
respect,  and,  it  can  be  claimed,  due  to  missionary  influence. 
Orphanages,  asylums  for  lepers  and  incurables,  generally  speaking, 
are  more  and  more  occupying  the  upper  classes.  Again,  under  the 
Christian  propaganda  the  man  not  the  family  is  the  important  feat- 
ure. Man  is  made  the  valuable  unit,  and  as  you  increase  his 
personal  sense  of  responsibility  to  a  God,  you  will  undoubtedly 
increase  his  value  as  a  man.  This  to  me  seems  the  most  valuable 
feature,  to  the  Japanese,  of  Christianity  to  their  country.  This 
developing  the  sense  of  individuality,  the  lack  of  which  cannot  help 
striking  the  most  casual  pilgrim  through  the  land.  Apart  entirely 
from  any  question  of  religion,  Christianity  on  the  purely  ethical  side 
has  shown  features  in  which  the  systems  in  force  were  lacking.  It 
has  presented  its  credentials  and  their  value  appears  in  the  results. 

Religion  as  a  question  of  economics  seems  necessarily  polemi- 
cal. It  seems  impossible  not  to  be  drawn  into  the  whirlpool  of 


226  SAKURAMBO 

dogmatic  controversy.  If  anything  has  nothing  to  do  with  relig- 
ion, is  bound  down  strictly  to  the  examination  of  fact,  it  is  science. 
Science  has  nothing  to  do  with  speculative  processes  incapable  of 
proof.  Even  her  own  hypotheses  and  theories  are  simply  means 
to  enlarge  her  viewpoint  of  fact.  Means  that  are  to  be  rejected  at 
once  as  soon  as  they  fail  in  their  effect.  And  yet  the  greatest  of  all 
controversies  is  called  that  between  Science  and  Religion.  It  is 
only  fair  to  say  that  science  is  but  little  to  blame  for  such  contro- 
versy. Dogmatic  religion  has  chosen  to  plunge  into  a  contest  over 
facts  and  usually  with  most  disastrous  results  to  itself.  The  fact 
that  Galileo  was  right  when- he  said  that  the  earth  moved  around 
the  sun  and  not  vice  versa,  and  that  the  geologists  were  right 
when  they  said  that  changes  of  level  still  going  on  were  the  cause 
of  sea  shells  being  found  on  the  mountain  slopes  and  were  no 
evidence  of  a  universal  flood,  had  much  to  do  with  lowering  the 
confidence  of  men  in  religious  dogma.  It  was  a  very  important 
fact  to  catch  religion  palpably  in  the  wrong.  Wrong  in  one  thing 
it  could  well  be  wrong  in  many  things.  Now  many  things  have 
been  laid  down  in  religious  dogma  and  many  constructions  of  the 
old  Hebrew  books  have  been  given  the  force  of  religious  law. 
Strictly  speaking,  in  religion — the  only  instance  in  western  civil- 
ization— a  standard  akin  to  that  of  the  Chinese  system  has  been 
developed.  The  classical  period  of  The  Church  is  right  and  devia- 
tion from  the  tenets  then  laid  down  is  in  itself  evidence  of  wrong. 
This  of  course  has  led  in  these  days  of  free  investigation  to  some 
frightful  collapses  of  old  authority.  The  Fathers  of  the  Church 
wrote  with  anything  but  a  knowledge  of  the  material  world,  but 
managed  to  weave  the  material  so  into  the  theological  that  it  is 
hard  to  separate  them  without  pulling  the  whole  structure  to  the 
ground.  One  great  religious  body  has  recognized  this,  and  relying 
on  its  compact  and  dictatorial  organization  has  placed  a  limit  on 
such  investigation.  The  Pope's  encyclical  letter  in  July,  1870, 
on  infallibility,  seemed  to  be  a  Bull  of  the  Middle  Ages  in  this 
Age  of  Iron.  And  yet  the  Roman  Hierarchy  knew  their  ground. 
The  Bull  would  drive  a  certain  group  of  men  out  of  the  Church — 


SHINANO    WAY  227 

its  best  and  strongest  element — but  their  continuance  in  it  under 
the  existing  conditions  meant  a  disruption  of  the  Church's  organ- 
ization. In  the  first  instance  the  Church  was  an  organization  and 
rested  on  the  authority  of  the  past.  That  authority  could  not  be 
made  a  subject  of  investigation. 

The  land  as  yet  lies  open  to  the  Philistine  but  I  take  my  leave 
of  Karuizawa  at  a  fair  hand-gallop,  remembering  the  excellent 
practice  of  Panurge,  who  under  circumstances  of  danger  "  ran 
away  as  fast  as  he  could,  for  fear  of  blows,  whereof  he  was 
naturally  fearful." 


VII 


FROM  BUNGO  TO  HISEN 

"  II  mondo  e  la  rappresentazione  della  sensibilita  e  del 
pensiero  di  pochi  uomini  superiori,  i  quali  lo  hanno 
create  e  quindi  ampliato  e  ornato  nel  corso  del  tempo 
e  andramo  sempre  piu  ampliandolo  nel  futuro." 

Romanzi  del  Giglio. 

Of  the  many  delightful  Japanese  inns — particularly  so  in  the 
pleasant  spring  and  summer  season — that  of  Miyajima,  the  Momi- 
jiya  (Maple  Inn)  holds  first  rank.  It  is,  literally  speaking,  distrib- 
uted along  the  sides  of  a  little  ravine.  The  detached  cottages  of 
which  it  consists  are  hidden  away  among  the  hundreds  of  maples, 
and  picturesque  little  waterfalls,  kiosks,  bridges,  and  toro  or  stone 
lanterns,  make  up  a  most  charming  picture.  Miyajima  is  always 
delightful,  so  much  so  that  one  could  wish  it  transported  to  some 
other  part  of  the  island  empire,  where  it  could  be  enjoyed  in  peace 
and  freedom.  Individually  speaking,  it  has  about  as  much  strat- 
egic value  as  the  thousand  islands  of  the  Saint  Lawrence,  but 
unfortunately  it  is  in  the  Inland  Sea.  The  Japanese  military  man 
in  his  sphere  of  action  must  have  something  on  which  to  scribble 
a  report.  If  there  is  no  opportunity  he  will  create  the  opportunity. 
He  who  thinks  he  is  going  to  ramble  unchecked  through  the  classic 
shades  of  Miyajima  will  soon  find  himself  pulled  up;  so  carefully 
do  they  follow  every  foreigner  through  this  district  that  it  is  matter 
of  surprise  that  the  railway  carriages  do  not  carry  a  guard.  It  is 
•only  fair  to  say  that  they  wrap  a  good  deal  of  velvet  around  the 
strangers'  chains  so  that  they  do  not  gall.  The  out-and-out  mili- 
tary man  is  infinitely  preferable  to  the  civilian  official  \vho  in  places 
has  to  act  for  him.  Miyajima  is  mainly  famous,  however,  not  for 
its  inn  but  for  its  Shinto  temple  and  particularly  for  the  great  torii 
standing  far  out  in  the  inlet  at  the  head  of  which  the  temple  has 

been  erected.     This  stands  on  piles,  and  when  the  tide  and  moon 
228 


SHINANO    WAY  229 

are  full,  as  viewed  from  the  head  of  the  little  bay  the  picture  is 
exquisitely  beautiful.  Nevertheless  there  is  something .  lacking 
in  the  scene.  After  all  it  is  simply  and  solely  the  work  of  men's 
hands,  not  the  inspiration  of  a  great  idea.  Strip  it  of  its  surround- 
ings and  all  the  defects  of  the  somewhat  squat  outline,  the  irregu- 
larity of  arrangement  of  the  component  buildings  force  themselves 
on  the  eye.  It  has  been  said  that  to  judge  the  beauty  of  the  Jap- 
anese temple  properly  one  should  see  it  under  just  such  conditions 
of  light  .and  shadow.  This  is  most  certainly  true,  but  even  then 
we  would  not  compare  it  seriously  to  the  splendid  Duomo  of  Milan, 
a  lacework  in  stone  with  its  hundreds  of  minaret-like  spires,  its 
white  marble  shining  like  silver  in  the  moonlight.  The  one  is  the 
beauty  of  the  jewel  box  in  which  is  preserved  things  earthly,  the 
other  the  beauty  of  a  great  shrine  in  which  is  embodied  man's 
ideal  of  things  heavenly.  One  could  as  readily  compare  the  bijou 
palaces  of  the  Pare  Monceaux  with  the  Louvre.  The  temple  at 
Miyajima  of  course  has  the  usual  misty  history  of  Things  Japanese, 
but  its  real  history  seems  to  date  from  the  days  of  Taira  Kiyomori 
and  that  was  a  bare  eight  hundred  years  ago.  The  island  itself  is 
in  the  middle  of  one  of  those  great  red  splotches  on  the  map  of 
the  Imperial  Geological  Survey,  and  which  represents  that  ex- 
tremely durable  material,  granite.  It  is  a  very  rotten  rock  here, 
mainly  made  up  of  feldspar,  and  wherever  exposed  is  so  badly 
disintegrated  as  to  readily  crumble  under  the  pressure  of  the 
fingers. 

It  was  nearly  noon  when  I  tore  myself  away  from  the  local 
attractions,  and,  once  more  crossing  by  the  tiny  steam  ferry  that 
runs  to  the  mainland,  found  room  on  the  southbound  train.  The 
Japanese  have  imported,  as  we  know,  many  western  traits,  some 
of  which  could  very  well  be  dispensed  with.  The  "  train  hog  " 
is  well  known  in  all  parts  of  the  world.  He  is  an  animal  that 
flourishes  even  under  adverse  circumstances.  He  is  by  no  means 
unknown  in  Japan  and  a  large  part  of  the  genus  are  of  the  native 
species.  There  is  the  same  indisposition  to  make  any  movement 
of  their  goods  and  chattels  so  carefully  disposed  as  to  afford  them  a 


230  SAKURAMBO 

maximum  of  room  and  comfort  even  in  the  face  of  a  crowded 
train.  The  trio  on  which  Mr.  Pickwick  was  "  chummed  "  —the 
Leg,  the  Butcher,  and  the  hirsute  Mr.  Smangle — are  accommoda- 
tion itself  compared  to  many  of  these  worthies.  All  Japanese  carry 
a  huge  rug  in  travelling,  and  the  first  thing  these  gentry  do  is  to 
dispose  the  rug  over  three  or  four  seats,  curl  up  on  it  and  incon- 
tinently go  to  sleep.  One  would  suppose  they  never  got  a  chance 
anywhere  else.  There  is  no  difficulty  about  adjusting  such  matters 
at  the  railway  station  where  the  station  master  and  his  subordinates 
look  after  the  seating  of  the  passengers.  En  route  the  guard  is 
not  seen  and  rarely  takes  the  initiative  anyhow.  I  much  prefer 
the  autocratic  American  "  conductor.''  He  is  always  passing  up 
and  down  the  train,  the  company's  rules  are  strict,  and  a  woman 
or  child  rarely  has  to  appeal  to  him.  His  business  is  to  know  his 
train  and  his  eagle  eye  soon  catches  up  the  trail  of  "  the  hog." 
He  acts  on  his  own  initiative.  "  God  helps  those  who  help  them- 
selves," but  the  train  conductor  often  swings  the  saying  over  into 
its  proper  application.  There  are  two  excellent  Japanese  inns  at 
Bakan,  one  of  them  the  Daikichi,  being  charmingly  situated  at  the 
edge  of  the  water.  The  view  from  here  across  the  straits,  by  day 
or  night,  is  beautiful.  Unfortunately  I  landed  in  the  middle  of  a 
festival  combined  with  the  advent  of  some  notable,  and  the  town 
was  jammed.  Under  the  able  guidance  of  my  kurumaya  we 
"  did  "  the  place  as  far  as  inns  were  concerned  but  without  effect. 
Moji,  on  the  other  side  of  the  strait,  is  not  attractive  looking.  It 
is  the  port  for  shipping  coal  and  is  as  dirty  as  such  a  business  would 
warrant.  The  hotel  is  by  no  means  bad,  and  would  be  much  better 
if  they  abandoned  foreign  style  and  confined  their  guests  to  Jap- 
anese apartments.  The  food  was  excellent  but  the  European  rooms 
were  intolerable  even  for  Japan.  The  service  was  the  haphazard 
service  of  a  boy  who  was  usually  occupied  elsewhere.  People  must 
be  very  carefulin  their  movements  in  this  district.  All  sketching, 
photographing,  or  anything  in  which  pen  or  pencil  is  concerned,  is 
absolutely  forbidden  and  certain  to  bring  down  unpleasant  conse- 
quences. Attendant  circumstances  never  figure  in  the  case.  The 


SHIXAXO    WAY 

Japanese  official  is  strictly  bound  down  to .  formula  and  drives  it 
even  to  the  limits  of  absurdity.  To  him  the  role  of  Dogberry  is 
perfectly  legitimate. 

It  was  raining  miserably  when  I  got  away  from  Moji  the  next 
morning.  Black  puddles,  grimy  awnings,  dirty  faces  were  the 
main  features  stamped  on  my  mind.  Even  the  rain  drops  carried 
their  little  burden  of  coal  dust  to  deposit  its  stain  wherever  it  fell, 
and  badly  did  the  foreigner's  sun  hat  need  pipeclaying  after  Moji's 
sayonara.  A  sun  hat,  by  the  way,  is  very  convenient  in  Kyushu 
at  a  much  earlier  season  than  at  Kyoto  or  Tokyo.  The  kusoshi^'o 
or  Asiatic  gulf  stream,  makes  the  climate  of  the  South  island  much 
warmer.  To  some  degree  this  enhances  the  beauty  of  this  part 
of  the  Empire.  The  green  certainly  seems  richer  and  more  luxuri- 
ant than  in  other  parts  of  Japan,  and  adds  an  interest  to  scenery 
otherwise  much  like  that  found  elsewhere  in  the  islands.  I 
stopped  off  at  Xakatsu  to  make  a  side  trip  to  the  Habakei  valley 
some  ten  miles  distant,  a  course  which  cannot,  however,  be  recom- 
mended. The  scenery  was  pretty  but  can  be  matched  in  a  score 
of  places  in  northern  and  central  Japan.  The  Shofuken  at  Nakatsu 
can  be  spoken  of  more  enthusiastically.  It  was  a  pretty  little  inn 
and  the  tiny  Japanese  garden  was  a  grand  rest  to  the  eye  after 
my  late  somewhat  crude  entertainment.  Japanese  love  of  Nature 
.is  singularly  complete.  They  are  equally  at  home  on  the  country- 
.side  and  in  their  gardens  on  which  a  whole  system  of  aesthetics 
has  been  built.  Every  stone,  the  emplacement  of  every  object,  is 
related  to  the  whole  which  must  be  read  aright  to  grasp  its  mean- 
ing. The  Japanese  will  find  in  his  garden  something  that  will 
mimic  perhaps  some  far  distant  scene,  and  will  promptly  scribble  off 
a  poem  from  the  mental  vision  aroused  in  his  mind's  eye.  The 
appeal  is  to  the  contemplative  side  of  man's  nature,  hence  the  avoid- 
ance of  violent  contrasts  and  equally  of  the  maddening  regularity 
which  sets  all  one's  mathematical  faculties,  always  troublesome 
as  far  as  they  exist,  to  trying  to  detect  sonie  break  in  their  faultless 
lines  and  curves. 

The  jumping  off  place  of  this  particular  branch  line  of  rail- 


SAKURAMBO 

way  is — or  was — Usa.  Here  I  landed  toward  evening  to  find  my- 
self in  the  -midst  of  a  number  of  Japanese  inns  and  tea-houses 
clustered  around  the  terminus.  My  destination  was  the  Wakaya, 
of  which  I  knew  nothing  beyond  the  fact  that  it  did  not  even  rise 
to  the  dignity  of  a  star  in  the  guide-book.  My  ricksha  man  seemed 
a  little  startled,  but  we  were  loaded  into  his  vehicle,  making  with 
the  bag  a  fair  armful,  and  started  off  through  the  dirtiest  town  I 
have  seen  in  Japan.  The  streets  were  broken  with  great  holes 
and  gullies,  which  traffic  and  the  previous  rain  had  filled  with  a  soft 
and  unctuous  mud  in  places  a  foot  deep.  This,  however,  was 
struggled  through  and  off  we  started  into  the  country.  There 
seemed  to  be  something  palpably  wrong  here,  so  I  held  argument 
with  my  steed,  which  fortunately  in  this  case  could  talk  as 
much  to  the  point  as  Balaam's  ass.  li  The  Wakaya  of 
Usa  ?  "  He  knew  it  well,  and  without  further  parley  started  off 
again  for  parts  unknown.  It  was  plain  there  was  some  dreadful 
mystery  involved  here,  but  as  the  place  might  be  on  the  other  side 
of  the  island  and  it  was  growing  late,  and  as  the  idea  of  a  second 
encounter  with  the  mud  was  equally  out  of  the  question,  I  let  him 
go  on  to  accept  what  the  gods  should  send  me.  And  the  gods 
were  kind.  After  a  ride  of  nearly  three  miles  from  the  railway 
station  we  came  to  a  beautiful  little  hamlet,  shaded  in  the  midst 
of  a  grove  of  cryptomeria  and  in  front  of  which  ran  a  pretty  river. 
There  was  not  a  sign  of  the  more  vulgar  occupations  by  which  man 
puts  bread  in  his  mouth.  No  long  approach  of  shops  marred  the  way 
to  the  sanctuary  of  the  gods.  A  large  red  lacquered  bridge  crossed 
the  stream.  This  is  barred  and  only  for  use  of  the  emperor's 
envoy.  Leaving  the  ricksha  on  the  further  side  my  man  shouldered 
the  bag  and  we  descended  to  the  river  and  crossed  by  a  little  foot- 
bridge nestled  under  the  shadow  of  the  more  imposing  structure. 
A  few  steps  took  me  to  the  inn  which  I  shall  always  regard  as  the 
gem  of  Japanese  inns.  It  may  be  that  the  surprise  of  the  place 
had  something  to  do  with  it.  After  expecting  so  little  and  after 
the  uninviting  fishing  town  of  Usa,  the  contrast  was  certainly  very 
great.  It  was  the  off  season,  there  were  no  guests  but  myself. 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEN  233 

Nominally  I  had  the  room  of  a  dozen  mats  to  myself.  Really  I 
had  the  whole  inn  which  was  thrown  wide  open  to  the  summer 
breeze.  The  beautiful  screens,  the  embossed  finger  recesses,  the 
natural  scroll  work  between  the  rooms,  the  beautiful  polish  given 
to  beams  and  flooring,  were  all  delights  to  the  eye.  And  when 
ncsati  brought  and  served  the  tea  the  human  equipment  was  in 
keeping  with  the  other  surroundings.  The  tea  was  served  in  deli- 
cate little  cups  with  just  a  suggestion  of  decoration  on  their  surface, 
and  no  geisha  could  have  done  the  pouring  out  more  gracefully 
than  the  maid  of  the  inn.  The  shrines  themselves,  the  cause  of 
being  of  .the  hamlet,  stand  among  the  green  trees  in  all  their  blaze 
of  red.  They  are  dedicated  to  that  strenuous  Emperor  Ojin,  of 
whom  tradition  gives  the  hint  that  he  had  his  way  to  make  good 
before  he  could  write  his  title  clear  to  the  throne.  Chuai,  his 
father,  who  refused  to  obey  the  mandate  of  the  gods  to  conquer 
Korea,  probably  because  he  was  pretty  busy  in  that  line  at  home, 
has  a  shrine;  as  also  that  extraordinary  but  far  more  historical 
character  Jingo,  wife  of  Chuai,  the  reputed  conqueror  of  the 
hermit  kingdom.  These  shrines  of  Usa  do  indeed  represent  the 
ancient  of  days  in  Kyushu,  that  peculiar  period  of  temporary  trans- 
fer of  power  from  Yamato  to  the  South  island  which  is  a  puzzle 
to  Japanese  historians. 

It  is  called  twelve  ri  (thirty  miles)  to  Beppu  and  it  is  at  least 
ten  ri  (twenty-five  miles).  In  the  morning  I  started  early  with 
two  men  through  a  beautiful  mountain  country,  and  over  a  road 
that  can  be  compared  to  the  great  Swiss  roads.  Japanese  roads 
as  a  rule  are  a  great  lottery,  mainly  I  think  because  they  are  most 
of  them  of  local  importance  and  their  maintenance  is  looked  after 
by  the  local  authorities.  They  may  be  in  good  condition  one  year 
and  barely  passable  the  next.  Even  w^hen  good  they  are  rarely 
more  than  a  cart  track.  There  are  other  roads,  however,  which 
palpably  show  the  hand  of  the  central  government,  their  use  is 
national,  and  this  Beppu  road  is  one  of  them.  Stone  retaining 
walls,  stone  and  iron  bridges,  broad  and  sweeping  easy  lines. 
There  was  no  sacrifice  of  efficiency  to  expense.  Hills  \vere  climbed 


SAKUKAMBO 

at  easy  grades  and  not  with  the  reckless  disregard  of  the  perpen- 
dicular so  often  the  case  with  Japanese  roads.  The  drainage  was 
also  well  looked  after.  Five  and  a  half  hours  brought  me  into 
Beppu.  I  put  up  at  the  Hinagoya,  one  of  the  better  class  of 
Japanese  inns.  Beppu  is  a  watering  place,  and  at  this  particular 
time  the  season  was  "  on  "  and  the  place  full  of  people  taking  the 
baths.  The  inn  baths  were  beautifully  arranged  with  separate 
bathing  for  the  sexes.  The  baths  were  large  pools  with  cemented 
or  stone  sides  and  flooring  around  the  bath.  Everything  was  ex- 
quisitely clean.  The  most  exacting  foreigner  could  not  complain 
of  the  food.  They  literally  filled  one  to  the  neck,  and  then  brought 
a  most  delicious  concoction  of  turtle — dressed  not  unlike  our  terra- 
pin— for  which  the  place  is  somewhat  noted.  A  most  dangerous 
lure  to  repletion.  There  are  large  public  baths  both  at  Beppu 
and  at  its  suburb  on  the  hill,  Kannawa  some  three  miles  distant. 
The  sexes  all  bathe  here  together,  and  the  Garden  of  Eden  state  of 
affairs,  this  sort  of  undress  assembly  of  Ojisan  and  Obasan,  so  to 
speak,  has  its  amusing  features.  Kannawa  has  a  collection  of  hot 
water  phenomena  as  interesting  as  Unzen.  One  sometimes  gets 
startled  out  of  their  nonchalance  when  on  thoroughly  native  soil. 
The  Japanese  peasant  is  often  as  much  a  product  of  Nature  as  any 
old  cow  being  driven  along  the  roadway.  There  are  some  things 
for  which  royalty  itself  can  find  no  substitute.  Discussion  under 
circumstances  of  natural  stress  is  embarrassing  especially  when  the 
question  of  sex  is  a  matter  of  indifference,  not  a  mitigating  factor. 
I  had  a  long  ride  in  front  of  me  the  next  day  to  Takeda  so  took 
advantage  of  the  electric  tram  line  that  runs  beyond  Oita  to  cover 
that  much  of  my  journey.  It  was  a  change  from  the  more  elegant 
establishment  at  Beppu,  where  there  were  several  Japanese  who 
spoke  excellent  English,  to  the  quiet  country  inn  at  Oita.  Every- 
thing, however,  was  very  nice  and  clean,  and  my  room  at  the  back 
of  the  inn  overlooked  the  river  and  a  piece  of  flat  country,  which 
carried  me  back  to  some  of  the  Dutch  flats.  A  windmill  would 
have  made  the  illusion  complete.  For  some  reason  the  Japanese 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEX  235 

have  made  no  use  of  that  valuable  motor  power  offered  so  freely  to 
them  by  Nature.  From  Oita  I  made  my  start  across  the  island,  the 
first  stage  being  through  beautiful  valley  and  mountain  scenery. 
At  times  it  was  nature  very  much  unadorned,  and  again  through 
parklike  scenery,  or  as  near  that  type  as  Japan  can  get  in  spite  of 
the  paddy  fields.  Takeda  is  set  in  the  centre  of  a  tangle  of  hills, 
picturesquely  wooded  with  charming  little  gorges,  yet  without  the 
savagery  attached  to  such  scenery.  We  finally  reached  it  by 
plunging  through  a  tunnel,  the  usual  method,  for  it  is  so  forgotten 
in  its  hollow  that  the  inhabitants  have  literally  had  to  dig  them- 
selves out  into  public  notice.  There  are  many  beautiful  waterfalls 
around  the  neighbourhood  which  well  repays  some  little  time  being 
spent  on  it.  Mine  host  kept  a  very  small  establishment,  and  inci- 
dentally ran  a  sort  of  grocery  business  in  connection  and  probably 
more  important  to  him  than  his  inn.  One  evening  I  was  here 
honoured  by  a  visit  of  a  delegation  of  students  from  the  local  school. 
It  was  not  the  first  opportunity  of  thus  coming  in  contact  with  the 
sprouting  ideas  of  "  Youngest  Japan  "  in  process  of  formation. 
These  boys  came  to  compare  notes  as  to  our  various  and  varying 
views  from  our  widely  separated  poles.  The  Japanese  boy  is  dis- 
tinctly a  product  of  his  training.  All  boys  necessarily  are  so ;  but 
they,  to  me,  lack  so  much  of  the  spontaneity  that  we  find  in  our 
western  boys  and  which  is  not  lacking  in  themselves  in  childhood 
that  it  can  fairly  be  classed  apart  from  race  habit.  For  some  time 
I  had  my  house  just  above  a  large  Japanese  school,  and  in  which 
the  whole  process  went  on  daily  under  my  eyes.  To  a  western 
teacher  such  classes  would  seem  ideal.  Xever  a  sign  or  word. 
Every  boy  as  far  as  the  rest  of  his  companions  were  concerned 
was  deaf,  blind,  and  dumb.  His  attention  apparently  was  con- 
centrated on  his  book,  and  let  us  hope  it  was,  for  vacuity  and  such 
stillness  would  portend  a  disastrous  outcome.  Afterwards  one 
could  see  them  in  the  playground.  The  same  primness.  The  only 
sign  of  schoolboy  openness  and  spontaneity  has  been  when  two  or 
three  were  seen  walking  together  with  arms  thrown  over  each 
other's  shoulders.  The  elder  bovs  seemed  to  take  no  interest  or 


236  SAKURAMBO 

leadership  in  the  games  going  on  around  them.  They  acted  like 
un.clergrown  men.  Their  relations  with  their  schoolmates  seemed 
very  formal,  almost  businesslike  you  might  call  it.  They  have,  it 
can  be  judged,  a  fixed  code  among  themselves,  and  it  should  go 
hard  with  the  boy  who  offended  against  that  code.  For  thus  early 
is  every  sign  of  individualism  among  them  marked  for  extinction. 
It  extinguishes  every  particle  of  generosity  in  their  boy  souls,  by 
taking  the  adjustment  of  their  difficulties  out  of  their  hands,  and 
putting  it  into  the  charge  of  the  general  body  of  the  students  who 
like  any  other  corporation  or  commonweal  cannot  sacrifice  the  prin- 
ciple to  any  emotional  feeling.  I  cannot  say  I  have  ever  been 
impressed  by  exhibition  of  that  lively  originality  of  thought  that  is 
not  uncommon  among  American  schoolboys.  Almost  bizarre 
ways  of  looking  at  their  studies.  The  Japanese  boys  I  have  met— 
few  enough  to  be  sure — gave  me  the  impression  of  "  book 
crammed,"  and  on  their  books,  or  rather  the  conclusions  they  drew 
from  them,  they  had  absolute  reliance  at  an  age  where  the  ques- 
tioning mind  would  be  expected.  Their  ideas  on  European  politics 
were  certainly  fearfully  and  wonderfully  made,  and  it  was  plain 
enough  that  they  had  not  been  urged  to  make  use  of  originals. 
One  feature  was  the  almost  erratic  personal  view  they  took  of  any 
subject  of  conversation.  Necessarily  in  their  minds  it  must  apply 
to  their  country,  and  if,  in  their  opinion,  the  deductions  were  unfa- 
vourable thereto,  their  disbelief  of  the  facts,  while  politely  put,  was 
sometimes  uncomfortably  direct.  Even  such  a  harmless  and 
apparently  safe  subject  as  the  water  power  available  at  Niagara 
Falls  and  its  application  met  with  this  polite  expression  of  doubt. 
I  believe  that  I  lost  all  credit  entirely  by  the  statement  that  the 
civilization  around  the  Mediterranean  dated  back  at  least  five  thou- 
sand years.  This  was  such  a  plain  inference  as  to  the  brand- 
newness  of  the  legendary  Jimmu  that  the  delegation  shortly  gave 
me  up  in  disgust  as  a  most  unreliable  sponge  from  which  to  squeeze 
any  useful  information.  I  think  these  interviews  were  rather  a 
strain  on  all  of  us,  especially  the  spokesman  and  myself.  His 
English  and  my  Japanese,  dove-tailed  together,  hardly  made  a  very 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEN  237 

lucid  medium  for  our  lofty  themes,  and  they  were  probably  roughly 
handled  in  the  translation.  But  they  were  very  nice  boys,  and  the 
Takeda  delegation  were  no  exception.  Quiet  and  well  behaved. 
Among  Japanese  schoolboys  I  have  never  seen  the  fights  and  quar- 
rels that  we  regard  as  part  of  a  boy's  education  to  learn  "  to  rough 
it  "  in  the  \vorld  and  not  to  grow  up  a  "  milk-sop."  They  are 
settled  in  committee.  It  is  a  matter  of  choice  and  frankly  I  prefer 
the  way  our  boys  settle  their  quarrels.  The  grown  world  is  not 
overly  just  in  judging  motives,  and  the  undergrown  world  is  hardly 
better  equipped  for  that  purpose.  Boys'  quarrels  are  as  trivial  as 
their  interests  and  being  personal  are  better  settled  "  vi  et  armis  " 
than  in  any  other  way.  The  public  school  sentiment  among  us 
will  always  see  fair  play  and  suppress  the  bully.  Japanese  boys 
are  differently  trained,  at  home  and  in  school.  Their  school  senti- 
ment seems  to  follow  more  the  established  laws  of  authority  among 
them,  and  according  as  that  is  interpreted  will  the  school  senti- 
ment swing.  There  is  too  much  room  for  wire  pulling  here.  It  is 
safer  to  trust  to  boys'  hearts  than  their  politics.  The  latter — 
politics,  discontent  with  or  dislike  of  a  teacher — often  sends  these 
young  self-appointed  judges  on  strike,  on  which  they  refuse  attend- 
ance until  their  wishes  are  complied  with  and  the  cause  of  offence 
remedied.  We  can  imagine  an  American  boy  returning  to  his 
parents  and  informing  them  that  he  had  struck.  It  can  be  opined 
the  parent  would  strike  too,  and  the  boy  elevated  to  his  toes  by  the 
paternal  clasp  on  his  ear  would  march  gingerly  back  to  his  duties, 
there  to  re-seat  himself  no  matter  how  painful  that  operation  might 
be  to  his  soul — and  body. 

It  is  a  relief  to  get  down  to  the  younger  members  of  this 
school  community,  and  especially  to  the  girls.  The  young  seekers 
after  knowledge  of  which  we  have  been  speaking  are  swelled  with 
all  manner  of  learning  from  heaven's  high  spheres  to  the  dissection 
of  the  minutest  bug.  Like  Mark  Twain's  "  Jumping  Frog  "  they 
are  almost  too  loaded  up  to  jump.  Our  children,  however,  are 
limited  to  three  R's,  which  is  dealt  out  to  them  in  songs  and  folk- 
lore. Every  fine  day  these  little  people  from  six  to  twelve  years 


SAKURAMBO 

old,  and  girls  up  to  sixteen  years  of  age,  are  brought  out  to  the 
school  playground  and  there  they  go  through  a  series  of  dances  and 
drills,  partly  play  and  partly  serious,  a  sort  of  "  going  to  Jerusalem 
game/'  which  it  is  a  pleasure  to  watch  so  thoroughly  do  they  enjoy 
it.  They  are  carried  out  to  the  accompaniment  of  the  songs,  pleas- 
ant to  the  hearer,  but  when  these  songs  rise  from  playground  and 
classroom  we  can  well  doubt  if  the  music  does  not  mechanically 
carry  the  idea  away  with  it,  in  one  ear  and  out  the  other.  There 
may  be  but  little  more  result  here  in  making  children  think,  than 
in  our  rhymes  arranged  so  as  to  give  some  sticking  power  to  our 
history  dates.  The  music  to  which  these  songs  are  set  becomes 
very  attractive  and  the  voices  are  young,  and  fresh,  and  vigorous. 
They  carry  a  moral  tale — obedience  to  parents,  loyalty  to  the 
Emperor,  some  tale  of  folklore  embodying  one  of  these  two  quali- 
ties. I  give  the  English  of  a  few  of  them  without  any  effort  to 
give  them  the  rhythmical  measure  of  the  original  but  merely  to 
give  an  idea  of  the  contents. 

i.  As  the  tiniest  grains  of  sand  when  piled  together  form  a 
mountain  as  great  as  Fuji,  so  if  we  do  not  relax  our  efforts  at  last 
we  can  climb  to  the  top  of  such  a  mountain. 

As  the  drops  of  water  that  overflow  from  the  spring  become 
a  mighty  river,  so  we,  by  adding  every  clay  a  little  to  our  progress, 
can  advance  as  does  the  mighty  Fujikawa. 

As  the  running  of  the  mountain  brook  seeks  to  lose  itself  in  the 
broad  ocean,  so  by  study  our  hopes  will  at  last  reach  a  sea  as  broad 
as  that  of  Suruga. 

2..  It  is  the  sparrow  that  early  in  the  morning,  as  the  sun 
rises,  remembers  your  kindness  and  rewards  it  with  his  bright  clear 
voice — chu-chu-chu. 

3.  To  the  dove,  with  its  po-po-p6,  crying,  "  Come,  come  down 
from  the  temple  roof  and  eat  of  the  feast  of  beans  spread  out. 
Eating,  not  to  return  at  once,  but  crying  p6-po-po,  there  to  play. 

There  is  one  very  valuable  feature  of  these  Japanese  schools 
which  will  well  bear  transplanting  to  America  and  to  Eng- 
land where  the  idea  of  conscription  is  so  particularly  obnox- 


FROM    BUNGO    TO    HIZEN  239 

ious.  Every  boy  (and  girl)  in  these  schools  gets  a  thorough  ele- 
mentary military  drill.  It  interferes  in  no  way  with  their  studies. 
There  is  no  reason  why  our  boys  should  spend  their  whole  recess 
hour  in  playing  tag  and  other  such  games.  The  drill  is  excellent 
exercise  in  a  physical  sense.  Many  boys  who  take  no  exercise 
would  get  it  under  such  conditions.  The  Japanese  go  still  further, 
and  the  older  boys  are  taken  on  country  marches,  and  to  the  rifle 
ranges  with  real  muskets  for  target  practice.  The  result  is  that  at 
the  end  of  seven  years  the  boy  is  ready  for  his  real  military  training, 
with  all  the  elementary  work  of  the  "  goose  step  "  at  his  finger  tips. 
Our  average  American  schoolboys  if  put  through  the  drill  and  told 
to  "  front  face  "  would  present  a  head  and  tail  arrangement,  with 
the  constituent  elements  interesting  from  a  tailor's  point  of  view 
as  giving  a  wide  range  of  the  human  figure  but  sadly  at  variance 
as  to  their  goal.  The  curriculum  of  the  Japanese  upper  schools, 
as  said,  is  very  wide.  To  work  up  to  the  existing  standard  must 
have  been  enormously  expensive,  as  there  was  as  great  a  lack  of 
collections  of  scientific  objects  and  instruments  as  in  America  there 
was  lack  of  objects  of  art.  In  both  cases  the  deficiency  could  not 
be  made  good  by  any  gradual  process  of  accretion,  but  only  by  the 
purchase  of  existing  collections  in  bulk. 

"  I  have  heard  affirmed,"  says  Herr  Teufelsdrockh,  "  by  not 
unphilanthropic  persons,  that  it  were  a  real  increase  in  human 
happiness  could  all  young  men  from  the  age  of  nineteen  be  covered 
under  barrels,  or  rendered  otherwise  invisible;  and  there  left  to 
follow  their  lawful  studies  and  callings,  till  they  emerged,  sadder 
and  wiser,  at  the  age  of  t\venty-five."  Let  us  leave  our  young 
men  thus  metaphorically  and  comfortably  bestowed  and  pass  on 
until  we  meet  him  again  in  the  Japanese  official.  We  leave  him  a 
gawky,  conceited,  ill-conditioned  youth.  We  find  a  very  different 
product  at  the  end  when  we  raise  the  barrel.  The  course  of  his 
education  has  been  peculiar  and  effective.  The  Government  has 
had  its  eye  on  him  from  the  start.  It  has  been  weighing  all  his 
capabilities,  and  his  training  is  directed  to  fitting  him  for  that 
particular  notch  in  the  service  in  which  he  is  to  be  placed.  The 


240  SAKURAMBO 

result  is  a  specialist.  The  business  that  comes  before  him  he  will 
do  and  do  well,  but  he  is  chained  to  formula,  a  creature  of  reports. 
There  is  one  very  simple  reason  why  the  system  does  not  go  astray. 
The  report — the  point  of  view  of  the  responsible  head — is  the 
basis.  Facts  must  fit  the  report  not  vice  versa.  They  have  all 
the  emphasis  of  dogmatic  theology.  There  is  no  going  behind 
them  as  to  things  human ;  as  to  things  physical— •"  shigata  ga  nai " 
— it  cannot  be  helped.  Like  all  men  of  real  responsibility,  the 
upper  Japanese  official  is  always  pleasant  to  deal  with  in  a  personal 
sense.  He  is  polite,  considerate,  will  give  the  official  view  of  the 
matter,  and  you  will  get  just  about  as  little  real  satisfaction  out 
of  him  as  out  of  a  stone  image.  This  is  due  to  a  very  simple 
circumstance.  He  represents  a  government  which  can  make  no 
mistake,  and  the  government  is  represented  by  the  reports  of  which 
he  has  a  little  pile  under  his  hands.  It  never  occurs  to  him  to 
question  them  and  he  does  not  understand  your  attitude  in  so 
doing.  If  a  lost  piece  of  baggage  is  directly  under  the  eyes  per- 
haps such  proof  of  dereliction  may  shatter  his  confidence  in  the  pile 
of  slips  which  should  record  its  presence.  The  American  official, 
I  think,  would  put  more  personality  into  his  work.  Naturally 
his  lading  bills  .would  also  be  his  first  resort,  but  there  would 
also  be  a  thorough  search  of  all  the  strays  to  see  if  any  of 
them  corresponded  physically  to  the  inquiry  sent  out  from 
headquarters.  A  Japanese  official's  business  is  confined  strictly 
to  his  own  office.  If  a  matter  does  not  fall  under  his  super- 
vision he  has  no  hint  to  give  as  to  the  proper  place  to  take  it. 
He  is  unwilling  in  the  slightest  way  to  involve  himself  in  anything 
outside  of  his  narrow  line.  .  The  American  official  has  usually  a 
wider  range  of  his  subject.  He  is  usually  ready  to  hazard  a  direc- 
tion or  suggestion  as  to  the  proper  course.  He  is  not  afraid  to 
hazard  his  prestige  by  a  possible  wrong  direction  in  such  an  outside 
matter.  He  is  only  infallible  on  his  own  ground.  The  Japanese 
official  on  the  contrary  seems  afraid  of  some  possible  mistake  on 
his  part.  Outside  his  immediate  charge  he  shrugs  his  shoulders 
and  is  silent,  and  you  go  out  into  a  wilderness  of  offices  with  no 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEX  241 

guide  but  chance,  for  unless  you  happen  on  the  right  department 
the  answer  is  always  confined  to  "  not  here."  Beyond  that  they 
will  not  hazard  themselves.  They  have  a  large  idea  of  them- 
selves as  "  officials."  The  idea  that  they  are  public  servants  never 
enters  their  brain. 

I  have  spoken  of  the  official  as  being  specifically  the  creature  of 
the  Government.  To  this  alone  he  is  bound.  With  the  people  as 
such  or  in  their  Parliament  assembled  he  has  nothing  whatever  to 
do.  While  he  is  an  official  he  has  no  connection  with  them.  His 
only  duty  is  to  the  Government  and  every  official,  from  the  judge 
on  the  highest  bench  to  the  youngest  clerk  in  an  office,  owes  his 
official  existence  to  the  Government.  Tt  is  worth  while  then  to 
see  what  is  the  relation  between  this  Government  and  the  fifty 
millions  of  Japanese  living  and  toiling  under  it.  We  usually  hear 
the  Revolution  of  1867  spoken  of  as  a  very  smooth  affair,  a  great 
patriotic  manifestation  of  the  people,  which  on  the  face  of  threat- 
ened foreign  invasion  sanctioned  a  complete  change  in  their  form 
of  administration  and  made  great  sacrifices.  This  contains  just 
about  as  little  truth  as  any  sweeping  statement  could  contain.  As 
in  every  other  country  every  concession  to  the  plebs,  to  popular 
representation,  has  been  forced  most  unwillingly  from  the  ruling 
class.  The  decline  of  the  Tokugawa  Shoguns,  as  that  of  their 
predecessors,  was  due  to  the  inherent  vices  of  the  system.  Lacking 
the  necessity  they  lacked  strong  men,  and  the  real  government  prac- 
tically passed  into  a  regency  just  as  it  had  done  with  the  Minamoto 
and  Ashikaga.  With  the  exception  of  the  last  of  the  line,  a  really 
able  man  who  accepted  the  position  to  close  out  the  bankrupt  affairs 
of  the  family,  the  later  Tokugawa  were  polished  well  meaning  men, 
as  little  qualified,  as  far  as  outward  manifestation  went,  to  sit  on  the 
throne  as  any  peaceful  burgher  in  the  kingdom.  Japanese  writers 
usually  attribute  their  fall  to  three  main  causes,  one  of  which  was  the 
fostering  of  Confucian  ethics  which  laid  particular  stress  on  the  duty 
of  the  subject  to  his  lord.  Where  there  was  a  divided  allegiance, 
naturally  when  discontent  arose  there  would  be  a  tendency  to  deter- 
mine toward  which  the  allegiance  was  really  due.  As  we  have 

16 


SAKURAMBO 

seen  the  miserable  condition  of  the  country  was  already  pushing  the 
Shogunate  to  its  fall.  It  was  reaping  all  the  results  of  bad  and 
selfish  government.  It  is  just  at  this  time  when  the  clans  were 
making  head  at  Kyoto  that  Admiral  Perry  came  a  second  time  to 
Yeclo  Bay  with  his  fleet.  The  Shogunate  was  literally  between 
the  devil  and  the  deep  sea.  They  knew  the  helplessness  of  the 
country  even  if  some  of  the  old  fossilized  daimyo  did  not ;  but 
they  were  unable  to  take  the  drastic  measures  of  former  days.  The 
calling  the  daimyo  to  council  on  affairs  of  State  was  an  admittance 
of  their  right  to  be  heard  of  which  they  had  been  most  carefully 
stripped  by  the  earlier  Tokugawa,  and  finally  the  submission  of  the 
Treaties  to  the  Emperor  for  sanction  admitted  his  right  to  the 
supreme  voice  in  the  affairs  of  the  country.  When  Prince  Toku- 
gawa Keiki,  however,  handed  over  the  government  to  the  Em- 
peror he  naturally  had  no  intention  of  handing  it  over  to  the  chiefs 
of  the  Satsuma  and  Choshu  clans  who,  together  with  Tosa,  con- 
stituted the  backbone  of  the  opposition  to  the  Shogunate.  It  was 
too  late,  however,  to  save  the  situation  and  his  adherents  were  too 
disorganized  against  this  powerful  and  united  opposition  who  in 
short  order  triumphed  over  their  opponents  and  seated  themselves 
in  the  former  stronghold  of  their  enemy — Yedo,  now  Tokyo. 
Even  in  the  very  hour  of  their  triumph,  however,  the  clans  found 
themselves  confronted  by  a  new  opposition  in  the  persons  of  those 
who  formed  the  progressive  element  and  wished  to  organize  the 
government  on  western  lines.  The  opposition  was  in  the  very 
ranks  of  the  clans  themselves  and  in  part  consisted  of  these  Liberals 
and  Progressists.  The  situation  was  complicated  by  the  presence 
of  a  body  of  reactionaries  who  sought  to  minimize  the  foreigniza- 
tion  of  the  country  as  far  as  possible,  retaining  the  old  form  of 
government  with  "  Sat-cho "  substituted  for  Tokugawa  and  a 
modern  remodelling  of  the  army  and  navy. 

In  addition  to  the  Satsuma  war  which  this  latter  forced  on  the 
Government  they  were  confronted  by  the  continual  agitation  of  the 
Progressives  for  the  constituting  of  a  national  assembly  which 
had  been  dimly  shadowed  in  the  Mikado's  speech  from  the  throne 


FROM    BUNCO    TO    HIZEN 

of  1868.  In  1874  the  Government's  hand  was  so  far  forced  as  to 
cause  the  assembly  of  the  prefects  or  higher  officials  of  the  prov- 
inces. The  spread  of  western  political  ideas  among  the  young 
element  was  making  great  strides  all  through  this  period  (1870- 
80)  and  in  1881  a  regular  party,  the  Jiyu,  was  formed  to  protest 
against  the  Government's  policy  of  delay  and  repression.  In  1881 
matters  came  to  a  climax.  Let  me  turn  to  a  Japanese  writer,  Mr. 
Hitomi,  to  speak  on  the  extremely  practical  points  of  politics  at 
issue.  "  The  Government  of  the  Clans  wished  to  sell  to  certain 
of  its  partisans  some  buildings  belonging  to  the  State.  The  whole 
nation  was  indignant.  A  thunder  of  objections,  cries  of  hate  and 
wrath  broke  out.  Everywhere  it  was  said  '  this  injustice  is  com- 
mitted because  we  have  no  chamber  of  deputies.'  The  public 
clamour  reached  even  to  the  throne.  The  Mikado,  whose  heart 
beat  in  unison  \vith  that  of  his  people,  ordered  the  opening  of  the 
Diet  for  1890  and  the  sale  of  the  State  property  was  abandoned." 
At  this  date  the  Mikado  was  twenty-eight  years  old.  The  clan 
leaders,  however,  had  one  great  advantage  in  the  thorough  dis- 
union of  their  opponents  who  had  so  exhausted  themselves  with 
their  agitations  and  quarrels  that  by  1885,  Mr.  Hitomi  tells  us, 
they  were  able  to  carry  through  such  reforms  as  were  necessary  to 
bring  the  Government  more  into  line  with  the  western  civilization 
\vhich  it  was  now  introducing.  In  this  year,  with  Ito  Hirobumi  as 
Minister,  the  question  of  revision  of  the  Treaties,  involving  the 
right  of  the  Japanese  to  regulate  their  own  tariff  and  the  jurisdic- 
tion of  the  foreign  Consuls  over  their  nationals  enforcing  foreign 
laws  on  Japanese  soil,  started  a  new  storm.  On  both  these  sub- 
jects the  Japanese  \vere  extremely  sensitive.  The  presence  of 
foreign  judges  was  to  them  an  insult  to  the  national  good  faith  and 
their  own  tribunals;  the  revision  of  the  tariff  was  absolutely 
necessary  to  enable  the  country  to  meet  the  expense  of  the  new 
regime.  What  the  nation  dreaded  was  concessions  to  the  foreign- 
ers on  these  vital  points,  and  on  these  points  they  were  determined 
to  have  all  or  none.  The  whole  country  was  in  an  uproar.  The 
Government  now  tried  repressive  measures.  There  were  riots, 


SAKURAMBO 

armed  collision  and  bloodshed.  The  leaders  of  the  opposition  were 
imprisoned  or  banished  from  the  Capital.  Every  right  of  petition 
was  refused,  and  the  Council  was  protected  from  outside  pressure. 
Even  the  strongest  men  hardly  dare  face  a  nation  in  wrath,  and  at 
last  in  1890  a  Diet  was  convoked,  selected  on  very  limited  grounds 
of  suffrage.  Practically  the  greater  part  of  it  was  appointed  and 
the  veto  power  on  its  proceedings  was  carefully  left  in  the  hands 
of  the  Government. 

In  outward  appearance  the  Japanese  Constitution  in  its  inde- 
pendence of  executive  and  legislative  has  some  resemblance  to  the 
American  Constitution.  The  resemblance,  however,  is  entirely 
superficial,  and  they  are  based  on  very  different  grounds.  When 
the  leaders  of  the  clans  were  forced  finally  into  calling  a  Diet,  the 
object  was  to  render  that  body  just  as  helpless  as  possible,  to  strip 
it  of  all  real  power,  while  at  the  same  time  to  be  able  to  "  report 
progress  "  to  the  nation  at  large  and  keep  the  governing  power 
in  their  own  hands,  to  maintain  in  fact,  if  not  appearance,  the  old 
government  by  a  council  of  leaders  and  heads  of  departments. 
Under  the  Constitution  the  Diet  must  meet  every  year,  but  that 
provision  was  nullified  by  the  power  of  proroguing  it  or  dis- 
solving it,  vested  in  the  Throne  at  will.  The  sanctioning  of  the 
Budget  was  granted  to  the  Diet,  but  this  important  power  was 
nullified  by  giving  the  Government  the  right  to  use  the  Budget  of 
the  preceding  year  in  case  of  failure  to  pass  the  new  Budget.  If 
a  minister  got  through  a  favourable  Budget,  by  this  and  the  power 
of  proroguing  and  dissolving  the  Diet,  he  could  still  carry  on  the 
government,  although  new  legislation  was  to  some  extent  blocked. 
Even  this  could  be  provided  for  by  Imperial  Ordinance,  good  law 
until  there  was  opportunity  to  submit  such  ordinance  for  the 
approval  of  the  Diet.  The  inviolability  of  the  members  of  the 
Diet  was  not  left  untrammelled.  As  Mr.  Collier  points  out  in  his 
''  Institutions  Politiques  du  Japon,"  the  clause  "  except  in  case 
of  flagrant  crime  or  an  offence  connected  with  disorder  internal 
or  external  "  admits  of  a  wide  interpretation  and  practically  covers 
political  offences.  The  membership  of  the  Diet  was  also  given 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEX  245 

due  consideration.  The  regulations  fixing  the  electorate  were 
most  carefully  drawn  to  exclude  all  the  commercial  and  industrial 
interests  of  the  country,  and  an  electorate  based  practically  on  tax 
paid  on  land  limited  still  further  the  power  of  national  expression. 
At  that  date  the  city  of  Tokyo,  with  a  population  of  a  million 
and  a  quarter,  had  less  than  three  thousand  qualified  voters. 
Stripped  of  all  offensive  power,  the  Japanese  Diet  was,  and  is,  the 
merest  farce  of  a  representative  body.  The  Ministers  remained 
responsible  to  the  throne  only,  the  Diet  merely  being  a  convenient 
form  of  ascertaining  the  opinions  of  certain  interests  in  the  land. 
No  legislative  body  is  going  to  submit  to  such  a  condition  and 
war  was  on  from  the  start.  Every  government  proposition  was 
thrown  out.  This  was  met  by  defiance  on  the  part  of  the  clan 
leaders.  In  1892  the  election  was  accompanied  by  riot  and  blood- 
shed due,  it  was  charged,  to  the  interference  of  the  Government  in 
their  efforts  to  return  their  nominees.  Diet  after  Diet  only  met 
to  be  prorogued.  One  Diet  is  said  to  have  lasted  thirty  seconds. 
Only  foreign  war  has  mitigated  this  condition  of  affairs,  during 
which  periods  the  nation  of  course  presented  a  united  front.  Men 
who  live  under  a  representative  government  can  sympathize  with 
this  struggle  of  the  Japanese  Diet;  to  force  responsibility  to  the 
Japanese  people  on  their  irresponsible  ministers;  to  take  out  of 
the  hands  of  a  little  group  of  men  the  governing  power  and  vest  it 
where  it  really  belongs,  in  the  hands  of  the  people  through  their 
freely  chosen  representatives.  They  have  not  gained  much  as 
yet.  A  wider  extension  of  the  electorate  making  it  somewhat 
more  representative  is  about  all  there  is  to  show  for  fifteen  years 
of  struggle.  The  property  qualification  has  been  lowered  to  a 
payment  of  national  tax  amounting  to  ten  \cn  yearly.  This  is  the 
wages  of  a  coolie  for  a  month.  To  pay  income  tax  to  that  amount 
would,  in  the  peace  time,  have  meant  an  income  of  two  thousand 
yen  a  year.  It  will  be  interesting  to  see  what  effect  the  expanding 
industrialism  is  going  to  have  on  this  question.  Under  modern 
conditions  this  must  have  means  of  making  itself  heard,  and  its 
prosperity  is  too  much  bound  up  in  the  prosperity  of  the  people  at 


246  SAKURAMBO 

large  not  to  make  themselves  heard.  Industrialism  will  make  itself 
felt  not  only  on  the  side  of  the  great  interests,  but  the  guilds,  those 
ancient  representatives  of  the  Japanese  plebs  will  demand  a  voice 
in  the  national  assembly.  It  is  at  some  such  point  that  the  Jap- 
anese people  are  going  to  enter  on  their  heritage  of  government. 
When  the  people  make  up  their  minds  to  that  change  the  present 
bureaucracy  are  going  to  have  just  as  little  power  of  resistance 
as  the  old  feudal  system.  No  question  enters  here  of  loyalty  to  the 
reigning  sovereign.  They  are  enshrined  in  the  hearts  of  the 
Japanese  people,  inviolable,  deep-rooted  in  the  religious  sentiment 
of  the  race.  But  this  feeling  of  loyalty  does  not  extend  to  the 
ministers.  '  The  king  reigns  but  does  not  govern,"  and  the  Jap- 
anese hold  the  ministers  strictly  responsible  for  all  the  acts  ot 
government.  This  can  now  only  find  its  expression  in  protest, 
even  at  times  in  assassination*. 

The  Government,  fortunately,  are  taking  what  to  an  outsider 
seems  the  very  best  means  to  ride  to  their  own  downfall  and  a 
change  in  the  present  system.  They  have  undertaken  the  educa- 
tion of  the  land  and  in  every  school  their  ideal  of  loyalty  is  taught. 
The  speeches  of  visiting  officials  to  the  schools,  the  formalities,  the 
general  throwing  up  of  hats  whenever  the  Government  is  men- 
tioned, reminds  one  of  similar  scenes  in  the  England  of  the  early 
nineteenth  century  when  the  muttering  and  rumbling  was  already 
heard  of  those  revolutionary  bodies  advocating  the  Repeal  of 
the  Corn  Laws  and  the  Reform  Bill.  But  they  are  also  teaching 
reading,  writing,  and  arithmetic  in  these  Japanese  schools.  News- 
papers are  widespread  and  political  interest  very  great.  One  is 
impressed  by  this  as  he  wanders  over  the  Empire,  from  city  to 
country  town  and  merest  hamlet.  The  Japanese  swallows  his 
newspaper  statements  on  general  subjects  rather  credulously,  but 
he  takes  his  politics  intelligently  and  knows  what  he  wants.  Of 
course  to  a  foreigner,  especially  American,  they  sometimes  have 
an  inverted  way  of  looking  at  things  that  might  be  more  familiar 
to  a  German  or  other  Continental  European,  who  is  willing  to  put 
up  with  much  for  unity's  sake  in  face  of  pressing  danger  on  all 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEX 

sides  of  him.  The  Japanese,  however,  is  differently  situated.  He 
has  no  such  pressing  dangers.  His  position  is  very  much  isolated 
from  all  effective  interference  in  his  home  affairs.  His  one  real 
enemy  has  never  been  able  to  get  near  enough  to  effectively  threaten 
him.  A  possible  enemy — a  great  sluggish  hulk — will  first  have 
to  shake  off  the  habits  and  enervation  of  centuries  before  it  presents 
any  points  of  danger.  Even  at  this  early  date  there  are  many 
protests  raised  against  the  Bismarckian  policy  of  the  governing 
powers.  The  old  excuse  is  of  course  made  that  the  people  are  not 
educated  for  a  fuller  system  of  representation.  In  the  eyes  of 
rulers  monopolising  the  government  the  people  never  are,  and  yet 
they  have  managed  very  well  elsewhere.  There  are  some  pretty 
wild  scenes  enacted  at  times  in  the  American  Congress,  in  the 
British  Parliament,  and  in  the  French  Chamber  of  Deputies,  but  it 
would  be  hard  to  point  to  a  single  occasion  where  the  national 
assembly  has  gone  wrong.  In  America  we  have  had  a  manhood 
suffrage  from  the  time  of  the  nation's  birth.  Whatever  has  gone 
wrong  has  been  due  to  idleness  and  neglect  on  the  part  of  the 
people  and  not  to  inherent  rottenness,  and  the  remedy  has  lain  in 
their  own  hands  and  it  has  been  used  unsparingly.  A  nation  wants 
none  of  a  bureaucracy  whose  "esprit  de  corps "  will  protect  its 
members  simply  in  self-preservation.  And,  incidentally,  a  nation 
is  much  less  likely  to  weaken  before  a  cleaning  of  the  Augean 
stables.  \Yhen  the  great  national  crisis  came  in  1861  in  the 
United  States  it  was  the  people  who  defeated  compromise  on  the 
question,  and  it  was  the  people  in  the  North  who,  in  face  of  discour- 
agement and  sacrifices,  fought  the  war  through.  A  bureaucracy 
would  have  sought  and  easily  found  such  compromise  in  1862. 
The  large  body  of  the  Japanese  people  give  the  stranger  the  impres- 
sion that  they  are  just  as  well  fitted  as  any  other  people  to  look 
after  their  national  interests ;  and  the  Japanese  Diet,  given  respon- 
sibility, would  be  no  more  likely  to  run  amuck  than  any  other 
national  assembly.  Where  no  responsibility  attaches  there  always 
is  more  or  less  wild  talk,  as  much  to  get  the  other  fellow  "  in  a 
hole  "  as  anything  else.  The  clansmen  tried  it  in  the  6o's  when 


SAKURAMBO 

they  were  egging  on  the  agitation  against  the  Shogunate.  not 
because  the  leaders  really  believed  in  expulsion  of  the  foreigners, 
for  once  in  power  they  made  a  square  volte  face.  The  wild  talk 
in  the  Diet  would  end,  as  it  ends  everywhere  else,  in  the  com- 
mittee room.  As  their  Government  distrusts  them,  so  the  Jap- 
anese apparently  distrust  their  Government  in  the  expression  of 
the  national  wishes.  They  did  not  trust  them  in  the  Revision 
of  the  Treaties,  or  in  the  treaty  made  after  the  China  war ;  and  the 
anything  but  dignified  discussion  over  the  Russian  treaty  would 
have  been  obviated,  if  the  people  felt  that  it  must  come  before  their 
representatives  who  are  responsible  to  them  for  the  way  in  which 
they  guard  the  national  interests. 

This  combination  of  western  individualistic  training  on  the 
unindividualistic  Japanese — a  training  that  to-day  is  distinctly 
anti-communistic — has  produced  a  unique  result.  The  most  nar- 
row-minded man  in  the  world  has  placed  in  his  hands  that  most 
beautiful  weapon  of  modern  thought,  the  Inductive  Logic,  painfully 
polished  by  years  of  trial  and  mistakes,  and  which  is  the  basis  on 
which  our  whole  modern  structure  scientific  and  social  rests,  and 
the  method  on  which  it  depends  for  its  future  progress.  For  the 
inductive  reasoning  has  the  advantage  that  its  ultimate  basis  must 
rest  on  fact,  and  the  facts  lying  at  the  basis  of  a  law  of  Nature  so 
determined  must  have  a  very  wide  range,  as  wide  as  Nature 
herself.  Where  the  law  does  not  conform  to  all  the  facts  it  gives 
way,  to  go  to  that  lumber  pile  of  human  effort  which  has  in  these 
latter  days  reached  such  monumental  proportions.  To  use  such  a 
process  requires  such  a  separation  of  self  that  the  only  factors 
of  error  left  are  those  physical  properties  of  sense  perceptions  by 
which  we  have  to  detect  and  measure  the  phenomena  under  exam- 
ination, and  this  as  far  as  possible  is  eliminated  by  widening  the 
field  of  observation  and  the  number  of  observers.  Many  are 
called  and  few  chosen  in  this  field.  Many  are  the  theories  elab- 
orated to  help  the  onward  march  of  science,  to  enable  us  to  co- 
ordinate phenomena  and  look  at  them  under  a  different  viewpoint. 
Many  are  the  theories  so  rejected  but  many  of  them  have  had 


FROM    BUNGO    TO    HIZEN  249 

most  fruitful  results.  No  one  seriously  believes  in  the  atom  and  the 
molecule  of  our  chemical  philosophy  as  anything  but  a  convenient 
mental  picture  which  enables  us  to  grasp  new  relations  among 
the  elements.  Most  fruitful  it  has  been  and  is  now,  as  is  shown 
by  the  co-ordination  of  such  widely  separated  forms  of  matter  as 
solid  liquid  and  gas,  enabling  us  to  express  in  a  common  mathe- 
matical formula  widely  separated  and  yet  related  phenomena. 
Never  has  science  stood  such  a  test  as  to  the  real  soundness  of  its 
groundwork  as  in  the  past  few  years.  We  simply  read  ionization 
into  our  chemical  formula,  and  substitute  Thompson's  "  cor- 
puscles "  for  the  atom.  The  mental  picture  of  the  atom  is  not 
affected.  It  still  remains  the  last  factor  which  our  balances  and 
measuring  tubes  are  able  to  take  into  account.  We  have  simply 
obtained  further  insight  into  that  mysterious  body  called  indefin- 
itely for  so  many  years  the  luminiferous  ether.  Deductive  Logic 
can  never  reach  this  point.  It  is  always  and  must  always  be  a 
thing  of  the  brain.  Indeed,  were  it  not  for  our  unconscious  induc- 
tive habits  of  thought  in  these  modern  days,  it  would  be  as  mis- 
leading to-day  as  it  has  been  in  the  past.  It  is  far  more  dangerous 
than  useful.  For  the  human  mind  rarely  forms  a  complete  picture 
and  hence  when  we  start  out  to  prove  a  law  deductively  we  are 
likely  to  miss  details  fatal  to  the  theory  but  passed  over  as  non- 
essential  or  even  unrelated.  The  field  of  the  mind  is  far  too 
limited  compared  to  any  range  of  natural  phenomena,  and  it  is 
only  later — perhaps  after  much  mischief  has  been  done  and  the 
whole  pack  has  been  led  far  astray — that  the  real  range  of  the 
subject  is  detected  and  with  it  incongruities  in  the  law.  Inductive 
Logic  taking  in  all  the  relations  of  an  object  to  other  objects,  after 
comparing  and  collating  these  relations,  avoids  this  danger. 

Xow  the  easterner,  the  Japanese,  is  essentially  deductive  in  his 
habits  of  thought.  Facts  have  been  the  last  thing  to  bother  him 
and  he  has  been  spinning  the  world  out  of  his  inner  consciousness. 
Such  consciousness  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  is  a  very  national 
consciousness,  and  the  result  of  it  has  been  a  universe  of  which 
he  himself  has  been  the  hub;  what  in  politeness  we  will  call  an 


250  SAKURAMBO 

ultra  development  of  "  patriotism  "  but  which  really  savours  more 
of  blind  prejudice.  It  is  hardly  to  be  expected  that  they  can  break 
away  from  it  in  a  few  generations,  but,  as  it  is,  we  have  the  strange 
sight  of  a  man  with  about  as  badly  a  warped  judgment  as  living 
at  the  bottom  of  a  well  for  centuries  can  give  him,  and  at  the 
same  time  as  to  acquired  knowledge  inside  the  range  of  this 
inrooted  idea  of  himself  as  the  centre,  armed  with  all  the  resources 
of  modern  western  thought.  In  everything  that  touches  material 
progress  he  is  wide  enough  awake.  He  can  see  the  advantage  of  a 
battleship  or  of  a  sewing  machine,  for  these  are  points  that  are  to 
be  adjusted  to  his  self-centred  system,  not  have  been  so  adjusted. 
Doubtless  in  time  this  will  be  so  thoroughly  done  that  we  will  hear 
that  both  these  products  of  human  ingenuity  originated  about  the 
end  of  May,  1905,  just  as  we  learn  nowadays  that  the  jinricksha 
was  of  native  invention.  But  the  frieze  of  the  Parthenon  or  the 
Venus  de  Milo  is  no  more  to  him  than  a  sawdust  doll.  All  classed 
under  the  generic  Ningyo.  Raphael,  Titian,  Murillo,  Rembrandt, 
or  Van  Dyke,  fall  into  line  with  the  illustrations  of  the  news- 
paper. As  for  western  thought,  it  has  all  been  thought  before 
(in  China),  and  he  swallows  the  posthumous  dates  of  the  Chinese 
commentaries  without  winking,  although  you  would  find  him  w^ise 
in  all  the  higher  criticism  as  to  the  origin  of  the  Homeric  legends. 
The  Drama,  a  mass  of  incongruities  and  impossibilities  sprinkled 
with  a  few  beautiful  passages,  are  vastly  to  be  preferred  to  the 
beautiful  lines  of  the  Antigone  or  the  CEdipus  Coloneus,  or  the 
passion  of  the  Hecuba  or  the  Medea,  and  of  course  Shakespeare 
went  to  school  to  a  Chinaman  and  concealed  the  fact.  You  hear 
much  of  the  agnosticism  that  is  widespread  among  the  Japanese 
upper  classes  which  is  perfectly  true  as  to  all  matters  applicable 
to  Things  not  Japanese,  but  not  to  the  reverse.  You  can  run  over 
a  considerable  gamut  of  subjects  with  Japanese,  not  only  educated 
and  able  talkers  on  their  own  ground,  but  with  full  experience  of 
other  lands.  Everything  from  the  scepticism  of  Hume  to  the  posi- 
tivism of  Comte,  from  the  cold-blooded  critical  method  of  Gibbon 
in  history  to  the  equally  cold-blooded  deductions  of  Malthus  in 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEX  251 

economics,  meet  with  their  high  approval.  The  higher  criticism 
as  a  method  applied  to  the  study  of  western  religions  is  an  instru- 
ment of  greatest  use.  In  the  next  breath  the  same  man  will  assure 
you  that  he  regards  the  fables  of  the  Kojiki  as  sane  history,  and  that 
he  thoroughly  believes  the  origin  of  his  nation  to  start  from  the 
descent  of  the  gods  into  Kyushu.  When  the  leaders  of  the  vic- 
torious troops  attributed  their  success  to  the  divine  virtue  of  their 
Emperor  and  the  approval  of  the  spirits  of  the  Imperial  Line,  they 
were  not  talking  for  effect.  "  By  the  grace  of  God  "  may  have 
some  meaning  to  the  crowned  head  that  uses  it  in  Europe,  but  to 
the  upper  classes  of  Europe  it  is  the  thinnest  pretence  of  a  formula, 
the  rallying  cry  of  their  class  against  democracy.  We  know  that 
in  our  secret  souls,  individuals  or  nations,  we  all  have  a  very 
considerable  opinion  of  ourselves.  It  is  a  very  poor  man  and  a 
very  poor  nation  that  has  not  this  healthy  egoistic  impression. 
Bill  Smith  criticises  Bill  Shakespeare,  and  what  is  more,  Bill  Smith 
goes  to  the  gallery  and  gives  his  opinion  just  as  vigorously  and 
just  as  confidently  as  Bill  Jones  the  critic  does  the  next  day  in  the 
theatrical  column  of  the  newspaper.  Whatever  he  has  of  this 
spirit  of  self-conceit  is  reinforced  in  the  Japanese  by  his  habit  of 
thought,  that  habit  which  makes  the  community  the  centre  of  inter- 
est and  the  centre  of  his  world.  A  man  might  distrust  himself  as 
individual,  but  not  as  body  politic.  In  the  West,  isolated  in  our 
individualism,  the  more  we  know  the  more  timid  we  grow.  Pes- 
simism is  a  true  child  of  the  modern  West.  We  are  growing  more 
suggestive  in  our  thinking  than  positive  in  our  action.  The 
reverse  is  the  case  in  Japan,  for  they  are  filling,  not  the  illimitable 
space  with  their  acquired  knowledge  but  a  very  finite  section  of  it. 
Their  system  of  deductive  generalization  makes  them  admirable 
government  servants.  The  Government  lays  down  the  ground 
plan,  fills  in  the  minutiae,  and  puts  each  man  in  his  place.  It  is  a 
system  built  of  carefully  selected  material,  not  a  system  to  cover 
all  material.  Just  at  present  the  machine  is  new.  So  was  the 
Tokugawa  machine  in  its  day.  Government  by  the  Diet  will  at 
least  drive  a  wedge  into  the  clan  system.  Widening  of  the  elec- 


SAKURAMBO 

torate  will  throw  hereditary  prestige  still  further  into  the  back- 
ground, and  everything  that  so  acts  strikes  for  individualism  and 
means  a  wider  range  of  universe  for  man  and  nation. 

What  then  is  the  relation  of  the  foreigner  to  the  man  trained 
in  this  nationally  egoistic  school  with  its  extremely  limited  out- 
look. The  usual  and  most  important  point  of  contact  is  with  the 
civil  and  criminal  code  of  the  land  as  administered  in  its  Courts. 
Previous  to  the  revision  of  the  treaties  Japan  adopted  a  code  mainly 
based  on  the  French  and  German  codes,  due  regard  being  paid 
to  modifying  in  such  a  way  as  to  provide  for  national  habits,  polit- 
ical and  social,  with  special  reference  to  their  own  family  system. 
Previous  to  the  adoption  of  this  code,  the  law  of  the  land  while 
to  some  extent  codified,  was  based  on  local  custom  and  was  pretty 
much  a  "  law  of  the  Cadi,"  so  to  speak.  The  Judiciary,  therefore, 
had  to  be  trained  in  entirely  new  habits  of  thought  and  of  method, 
and  from  the  criticisms  made  the  result  has  been  much  what  was  to 
be  expected — a  rigid  adherence  to  the  letter  of  the  law  with  a  good 
deal  of  timidity  in  applying  its  spirit.  If  a  purely  Japanese  code 
had  been  built  from  the  ground  up — and  it  was  more  the  spirit 
of  its  application  than  a  lack  of  basic  moral  and  legal  material  that 
needed  change — it  is  fair  to  presume  that  great  jurists  thoroughly 
imbued  with  the  spirit  of  such  a  code  would  have  risen  up  in  the 
land.  There  seems,  however,  a  general  consensus  of  foreign  opin- 
ion that  no  Lord  Mansfield  or  John  Marshall  has  as  yet  arisen  to 
infuse  spirit  into  the  dry  bones  of  the  present  borrowed  code. 
Foreigners  and  natives  avoid  as  far  as  possible  all  appeal  to  its 
tedious  processes  as  the  very  shadow  of  the  Evil  One,  and  for  the 
amount  of  business  done  there  is  perhaps  a  larger  resort  to  arbi- 
tration in  Yokohama  than  any  other  place  of  its  size,  and  that  in 
despite  of  the  excellent  reputation  of  the  local  Bench.  There  is 
nothing  extraordinary  in  this.  As  in  Pickwick's  case,  "  people 
who  go  to  law  or  are  dragged  into  it  are  naturally  nervous  over 
the  outcome,"  and  in  these  latter  days  the  resort  to  it  enjoys  any- 
thing but  good  odour  as  a  means  of  settling  disputes ;  the  best  of 
lawyers  avowedly  trying  to  keep  their  clients  out  of  court,  and  not 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEX  253 

get  them  into  it.  In  the  land  cases  reported  from  time  to  time, 
action  is  confessedly  very  conservative  and  leans  to  side  of  the 
native  or  original  holder.  This,  too,  is  no  peculiarity  of  the 
Japanese  Bench.  The  transfer  of  land  is  very  much  a  matter  of 
formalities,  and  in  their  strict  observance  depends  the  legality 
of  such  transfer.  In  Japan  as  elsewhere  the  strictest  regard  is  paid 
to  the  regularity  of  such  transfer,  but  the  peculiar  position  of  the 
foreigner  in  reference  to  land  lays  many  traps  for  his  feet.  He 
cannot  own  land,  he  can  only  lease  the  land  with  the  right  to  erect 
buildings  on  it.  Some  of  these  leases  amount  practically  to  a  sale 
of  the  land  being  for  very  long  terms  of  years,  but  it  is  always 
necessary  to  get  the  consent  of  all  the  parties  having  a  contingent 
interest,  and  in  the  complicated  family  system  of  the  Japanese  this 
is  by  no  means  always  a  simple  matter.  The  Japanese  as  yet  seem 
to  have  no  such  system  as  Title  Insurance,  great  central  plants 
covering  pretty  much  the  whole  system  of  the  real  estate  of  a 
district,  and  which  at  small  cost  enable  a  purchaser  through  one  of 
the  Title  Insurance  companies  to  judge  at  a  glance  just  what  he 
is  buying.  Their  system  is  much  as  it  is  in  our  small  towns  and 
some  country  districts,  where  search  must  be  made  in  the  records 
of  several  county  offices  to  get  all  the  necessary  data  as  to  previous 
transfer,  mortgages,  and  other  encumbrances.  Another  compli- 
cation lies  in  leases  made  outside  the  settlements,  many  of  them 
in  Japanese  names.  Duly  registered  at  the  Consulates,  these  leases 
were  held  to  be  legally  correct  as  to  the  rights  so  transferred. 
On  the  lapse  of  the  consular  jurisdiction,  registration  of  these 
virtual  transfers  \vas  required  to  make  the  title  hold  good.  This 
undoubtedly  was  a  retroactive  law  to  which  the  Anglo-Saxon 
anyhow  is  unfamiliar,  and  would  rest  blissfully  ignorant  that  their 
previous  title  had  been  vitiated  by  its  passage.  This,  with 
absenteeism  on  the  part  of  foreigners  who  have  gone  home  still 
retaining  their  Japanese  investments,  has  been  taken  advantage  of 
by  speculators,  not  to  be  called  by  any  harsher  names,  however, 
than  the  large  and  flourishing  band  of  kindred  gentry  in  our  West. 
The  original  idea  of  the  Japanese  regulations  seems  to  have  been. 


254*  SAKURAMBO 

to  prevent  foreigners  in  any  way  getting  control  over  land  outside 
of  certain  fixed  districts.  These  long  leases  on  outside  land,  and  in 
the  names  of  a  native,  were  of  course  a  subterfuge  and  an  evasion 
of  the  law.  The  Government,  however,  winked  at  it  and  tacitly 
admitted  its  legality  through  the  Consular  registration.  The 
Courts  have  acted  very  fairly  if  strictly  in  most  of  these  cases, 
and  where  judgment  has  gone  by  default  have  reopened  the  cases 
on  presentation  of  good  reason  for  a  rehearing. 

A  foreigner  naturally  stands  at  no  little  disadvantage  through 
ignorance  of  language  and  customs.  In  an  American  Court  the 
interests  of  a  foreigner  are  most  carefully  protected  with  view  of 
his  special  disadvantages,  and  American  juries  have  the  reputation 
of  equally  taking  these  disadvantages  into  consideration  in  the 
jury  box.  The  Japanese  have  the  French  system.  The  trial 
is  purely  judicial,  the  Judge  hearing  the  evidence,  conducting  the 
examination,  and  deciding  on  law  and  fact.  To  us,  to  look  at  a 
question  purely  from  the  legal  point  of  view,  is  only  looking  at 
one  side  of  it.  The  Judge  cannot  help  his  special  training  biasing 
his  more  general  point  of  view  simply  as  to  the  facts.  Everything 
is  examined  through  glasses  of  a  single  tint.  In  Japanese  criminal 
cases  it  is  a  question  whether  proper  weight  is  given  to  evidence 
of  foreigners  in  a  business  community  where  the  standard  is  neces- 
sarily high.  The  difficulty  has  more  than  once  arisen  in  assault 
cases  between  European  and  native.  The  low  class  Japanese  is 
very  truculent.  It  can  easily  be  noticed  how,  when  a  European 
accidentally  brushes  against  them  on  the  street,  they  stop  and  look 
back  after  him.  In  more  aggravated  cases  they  \vill  pursue  him, 
start  an  altercation,  in  which  they  are  enthusiastically  backed  up 
by  every  idler  and  ricksha  rough  in  the  vicinity.  Such  episodes 
rarely  go  to  personal  assault  among  the  Japanese,  but  a  foreigner 
does  not  know  that,  and  takes  the  will  for  the  deed,  as  he  would 
do  at  home,  and  vigorously  defends  himself,  especially  as  he  sees 
scores  of  natives  jostling  against  each  other  without  paying  the 
least  attention  to  such  an  episode.  The  westerner  therefore  may 
find  himself  in  court  as  defendant  with  the  triumphant  coolie 


OF  THE 

[   UNIVERSITY  ) 
FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEN 


as  prosecutor,  when  he  had  only  under  his  usages  acted  in  most 
justifiable  self-defence.  And  his  evidence  is  severely  scrutinized. 
Xow  the  westerner  is  essentially  truthful,  and  can  claim  more  than 
equal  credit  with  the  native  among  whom  the  national  habit  of 
adorning  a  tale  is  rather  widespread.  There  is  not  only  the  re- 
ligious sanction  of  the  oath  in  his  case  but  there  is  a  legal  sanction 
which  is  far  more  important.  Perjury  is  an  uncommon  occurrence 
in  a  western  courtroom,  which  we  will  not  claim  as  due  to  any 
moral  superiority  in  the  race  but  to  the  fact  that  the  westerner  is 
a  clearer  reasoner  than  the  man  of  the  East.  He  can  see  the  hole 
in  a  well-fitted  tale  very  quickly,  and  where  the  moral  obligation 
to  tell  the  truth  does  not  exist  long  experience  will  teach  him  that 
"  honesty  is  the  best  policy."  In  assault  cases  it  is  felt  that  unless 
the  foreigner  is  fortunate  enough  to  have  native  evidence  on  his 
side  it  will  go  hardly  with  him,  for  his  western  evidence  will  be 
badly  discounted.  And  he  need  not  rely  on  native  evidence. 
There  is  none  of  that  spirit  of  fair  play  which  is  a  part  of  our 
Anglo-Saxon  inheritance  and  which  makes  our  jury  system  possi- 
ble. This  has  never  had  a  chance  to  develop  among  the  Japanese. 
Their  old  clan  system  is  responsible  for  this,  stripping  the  individ- 
ual of  all  responsibility  and  putting  it  on  the  shoulders  of  the 
clan.  They  have  none  of  this  feeling  of  fair  play  toward  each 
other.  \Yhy  should  it  be  shown  in  the  case  of  the  foreigner? 
Take  the  weight  of  the  evidence,  and  the  avoirdupois  of  a  host 
of  coolies  will  outweigh  two  or  three  foreigners  without  much 
reference  to  the  probabilities.  There  is  no  doubt  that  every  effort 
is  made  to  be  fair  and  just,  but  it  is  the  system  that  is  at  fault, 
and  some  of  the  printed  decisions  seem  attempts  to  justify  the 
decision  reached  rather  than  expositions  of  the  legal  principles 
involved.  If  they  were  acting  to-day  on  a  code  based  on  their  own 
national  customs  and  legal  habits  of  thought  there  is  no  reason  to 
doubt  that  great  legal  minds  would  have  made  their  influence  felt  on 
the  Japanese  code,  but  they  are  acting  under  a  system  totally 
foreign  to  their  habits  of  thought ;  which  does  not  mean  of  course 
that  eastern  judges  cannot  apply  western  law  but  that  they  can 


256  SAKURAMBO 

hardly  be  expected  to  be  enthusiastic  over  such  application.  At 
all  events  a  remark  made  by  Professor  Dowden,  perhaps,  also  finds 
application.  Speaking  of  the  French  Judiciary  under  the  absolut- 
ism of  Louis  XIV.,  he  says :  "  Judicial  eloquence  lacked  the  breadth 
and  elevation  which  come  with  political  freedom  ;  it  contented  itself 
with  subtleties  of  argument  decked  with  artificial  flowers  of  style." 
Of  the  relations  between  foreigners  and  native  merchants  it 
is  hardly  necessary  to  speak,  for  the  Japanese  commercial  standard 
is  so  universally  a  subject  of  complaint  that  where  there  is  so  much 
smoke  there  is  bound  to  be  fire.  This  is  the  more  extraordinary 
in  that  among  themselves  they  have  always  made  use  of  an  exten- 
sive credit  system.  The  better  class  among  Japanese  merchants 
entered  very  reluctantly  into  the  foreign  trade,  and  even  to-day 
they  do  not  seem  to  have  the  control  and  disciplining  of  their  more 
slippery  fellow-merchants  that  they  have  in  other  countries.  How 
the  Japanese  ever  expect  to  replace  the  great  foreign  houses  in  the 
treaty  ports  is  difficult  to  imagine.  Until  a  very  different  standard 
is  adopted,  and  a  guild  is  ready  to  punish  not  to  uphold  delinquent 
members,  foreigners  will  want  to  have  their  representatives  on  the 
ground.  A  limiting  of  the  right  of  appeal  and  a  strict  construction 
of  contracts  in  the  courts  would  aid  this  only  to  some  extent.  The 
power  of  the  guilds  to  boycott  merchants  who  have  successfully 
maintained  their  rights  in  the  local  courts  can  only  be  broken 
down  by  the  action  of  the  Japanese  Government  itself.  One  hears 
much  of  such  boycotts  as  an  ordinary  weapon  of  the  guilds  in 
Japanese  commercial  life.  The  only  other  contact  which  the 
foreigner  is  likely  to  have  with  the  native  is  with  the  official.  The 
higher  Japanese  official  has  been  mentioned.  From  the  head  of 
the  office  and  the  older  men  one  could  ask  no  better  treatment. 
They  avowedly  do  their  best.  With  the  young  element,  the  sub- 
clerk,  the  sense  of  importance  as  a  government  clerk  is  too  new  to  sit 
easily.  He  is  lackadaisical  and  to  all  appearances  he  is  lazy.  From 
such  appearance  one  would  say  the  Government  offices  are  greatly 
overmanned,  and  cigarette  smoking  occupies  about  as  much  time  as 
making  entries  in  the  ledgers.  I  much  prefer  the  young  American. 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEX  257 

He  may  be  brusque — which  is  largely  due  to  our  idea  of  the  value  of 
time.  He  brings  matters  to  a  point  at  once,  as  if  his  time  too  was 
enormously  valuable,  but  he  interests  himself  to  put  your  business 
through.  Frankly,  to  get  rid  of  it  and  you ;  and  the  greater  despatch 
the  greatest  recommendation  to  his  employers.  If  he  is  a  government 
clerk  there  are  always  a  host  with  an  eye  to  his  place,  and  it  pays  him 
to  show  energy.  He  has  to  sit  hard  on  his  job  to  hold  it.  The  Jap- 
anese official,  it  can  be  said,  is  raised  above  any  attacks.  He  is 
inviolable  and  unapproachable.  The  same  cannot  be  said  of  public 
men  unconnected  with  Government.  If  one  can  judge  by  the  license 
of  the  public  press — which  emphatically  one  cannot — we  should,  at 
times,  have  to  apply  what  Gil  Bias  says  of  his  friend  the  licentiate 
of  Salamanca.  He  would  be  a  very  nice  person  were  it  not  for 
three  trifling  foibles,  "  litigation,  fornication,  and  intoxication." 

There  is  a  good  deal  of  "  squealing "  among  foreigners. 
Disputes  with  coolies,  extortion  at  hotels,  late  trains,  call  down 
an  amount  of  denunciation  or  the  pitying  shrug  of  the  shoulders, 
as  if  such  things  were  only  experienced  in  travelling  in  Japan. 
In  those  respects  they  are  at  least  as  well  off  as  at  home.  And  as 
to  safety,  Tokyo  is  a  far  safer  city  at  night  than  New  York,  Lon- 
don, or  Paris.  The  criminal  element  is  not  so  much  in  evidence  as 
in  those  great  cities.  But  there  is  one  marked  impression  in 
taking  a  wide  range  of  travel  through  the  country,  and  that  is  that 
the  anti-foreign  feeling  is  still  strong  in  Japan.  They  appreciate 
the  advantages  of  western  material  civilization  and  still  retain  their 
dislike  of  the  contact  necessary  to  reap  all  the  advantages  of  that 
civilization.  It  is  the  material  civilization  they  want,  not  the  broad 
international  life  and  exchange  of  ideas  that  in  our  own  intense 
western  nationalism  still  finds  expression  in  the  term  "  family 
of  nations."  Even  the  limited  and  harmless  contact  with  the 
foreigner  is  still  a  source  of  irritation  to  old  Japan,  and  an  im- 
mense amount  of  the  old  Japan  still  exists  and  is  instilled  into 
young  Japan.  Xow  this  is  not  simply  a  dislike  of  the  foreigner  as 
such.  \Ye  all  know  the  saying,  "  Bill,  there  goes  a  stranger." 
"  \Yell !  'eave  'art  a  brick  at  him."  This  is  a  feeling  found  all  over 
17 


258  SAKURAMBO 

the  world,  but  it  is  not  racial.  The  Japanese  feeling  is  strictly 
racial.  They  have  it  toward  the  westerner,  very  little  toward  the 
Chinaman,  and  it  only  needs  some  trivial  dispute  to  have  the 
barriers  broken  down  and  an  open  expression  of  dislike  to  the  Jin. 
Easterners  are  usually  specified.  Nankin  no  hito,  nippon  no  hito,. 
indo  no  hito,  or  Chinaman,  Japanese,  Indian.  Europe  is  simply — 
the  rest,  man  or  Jin.  When  the  Chinaman  falls  into  bad  odour  he 
too  becomes  Jin. 

As  I  had  entered  Takeda  by  one  tunnel  so  I  left  it  by  another, 
which  again  brought  me  into  the  outside  world.  The  day's  jour- 
ney took  me  over  the  central  plateau  which  occupies  the  centre  of 
this  northern  end  of  the  island.  We  were  not  long  among  the 
pretty  wooded  scenery,  but  were  soon  gradually  ascending  and 
winding  among  low  desolate  hills  covered  with  bamboo  grass. 
The  general  contour  reminded  me  somewhat  of  the  country  south 
of  Waiotapu  in  the  North  Island  of  New  Zealand  or  of  the  coast 
hills  in  the  neighbourhood  of  San  Diego  in  southern  California. 
Except  for  the  bamboo  grass.  The  Japanese  owes  much,  very 
much,  to  the  bamboo,  but  he  could  well  dispense  with  this  degen- 
erate form  "of  it.  One  sees  thousands  of  acres  of  land  in  the 
country  which  elsewhere  would  be  covered  with  grazing  cattle. 
But  this  grass  is  poison  to  them  and  with  sheep  the  expression 
"  rotgut  "  is  inelegant  but  accurate.  Charles  Dudley  Warner,  in 
that  excellent  guide  for  the  agricultural  neophyte,  "  My  Summer 
in  a  Garden,"  tells  us  that  the  American  pusley  has  more  original 
sin  than  any  other  weed  extant.  If,  however,  Russian  thistle, 
Canadian  dock,  San  Jose  scale,  and  even  pusley  can  be  success- 
fully dealt  with,  why  not  bamboo  grass?  It  certainly  looks  as  if 
the  attempt  to  clothe  these  hillsides  with  foreign  grass,  to  substi- 
tute clover  and  timothy  for  the  present  rank  article,  would  be  a 
profitable  investment.  At  the  head  of  a  pretty  ravine  I  left  my 
ricksha  for  the  men  to  carry  down  the  slope  as  best  they  could  for 
the  road  was  atrociously  ba-d.  At  the  bottom  we  came  out  on  a 
wide  beautifully  cultivated  plain,  the  floor  of  the  great  outside 
crater  of  Asosan.  There  are  but  few  breaks  in  the  precipitous 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEX  259 

sides,  one  of  them  being  at  the  point  by  which  I  had  entered.  In' 
the  south  end  rises  the  present  and  active  cone,  itself  a  great  moun- 
tain mass.  In  speaking  of  the  isolation  of  the  valley  at  Waka- 
matsu  I  mentioned  one  other  instance  in  Japan.  It  is  here  on  the 
crater  floor  of  Asosan.  A  score  of  villages  are  hard  at  work  with 
every  hint,  physically  speaking,  cut  off  of  an  outside  world.  One 
understands  now  the  slow7  climb  over  the  broad  plateau.  Asosan 
is  the  greatest  crater  in  the  world  with  the  whole  of  the  north  of 
Kyushu  as  its  base.  Greater  than  Halemaumau  that  vast  pile  that 
rises  in  Maui.  In  remote  ages  when  the  inhabitants  of  some  other 
planet  turn  their  telescopes  on  Terra  and  her  satellite,  Asosan  will 
be  one  of  the  few  of  our  volcanic  landmarks  to  command  a  feeble 
comparison,  unless  old  earth's  exit  as  a  scene  of  life  is  to  be  marked 
again  by  some  such  scenes  of  fire  as  she  has  already  passed 
through. 

And  these  peasants,  seen  working  in  every  direction  through 
their  fields ;  what  manner  of  people  are  they  ?  I  think  that  nearly 
everyone  that  comes  in  contact  with  the  individual  Japanese  peas- 
ant likes  him.  The  genuine  countryman  is  by  no  means  to  be 
confounded  with  the  town  coolie.  One  could  get  nowhere  a  finer 
courtesy  than  is  often  experienced  when  stopping  to  rest  or  to 
exchange  exceedingly  bad  Japanese  with  the  occupants  of  many 
of  these  isolated  thatched  houses,  almost  huts  we  would  call  them. 
Information  as  to  route,  shelter  from  the  weather,  are  extended 
in  a  dignified  and  kindly  manner  and  the  average  Ojisan  would  be 
hard  to  match  in  his  class  in  any  part  of  the  world.  These  country 
people  have  all  the  qualities  of  the  race.  They  are  brave,  polite, 
prejudiced,  and  pigheaded,  with  their  world  limited  pretty  much 
to  the  range  of  their  physical  sense  of  sight.  They  are  a  very 
important  subject  in  relation  to  other  nations,  for  it  is  the  Jap- 
anese peasant  that  forms  the  bulk  of  the  flood  of  emigration  to 
other  lands,  and  where  he  is  far  from  popular,  whether  it  be  in 
Korea  or  the  United  States,  in  Canada  or  in  Australia.  Part  of 
this  is  due  to  his  clannishness.  The  greater  number  enter  the 
United  States  to  form  part  of  their  communities,  not  to  enter  into 


260  SAKURAMBO 

the  general  life  of  the  people.  And  these  communities  are  very 
aggressive.  They  regard  themselves  and  act  as  a  little  section 
of  Japan,  a  nation  apart  from  their  immediate  surroundings,  to  be 
ruled  and  governed  with  small  regard  to  the  customs  or  the  preju- 
dices of  their  neighbours.  They  have  shown  at  times  small  dis- 
position to  resort  to  the  Courts  or  to  peaceful  measures,  and  these 
communities  often  carry  things  with  a  high  hand.  Armed  colli- 
sions have  more  than  once  required  the  interference  of  the  authori- 
ties in  the  United  States,  in  Canada,  and  in  Hawaii.  The  native 
does  not  view  with  any  particular  liking  the  collisions  between 
native  labour  unions  and  employers,  so  likely  to  occur  during 
a  prolonged  strike,  and  when  the  foreigner  chooses  to  make  the 
country  the  scene  of  such  private  war,  he  very  naturally  looks  still 
more  closely  into  their  desirability  as  political  and  social  bedfel- 
lows. It  is  hardly  to  be  doubted  what  action  the  Japanese  Gov- 
ernment would  take  if  foreigners  made  its  inland  waters  a  battle- 
ground, or  would  start  a  riot  in  the  streets  of  Yokohama  or  Kobe. 
But  the  fact  that  many  people — particularly  in  the  western  United 
States — have  come  to  look  on  the  Japanese  especially  as  tricky  and 
quarrelsome,  and  likely  to  give  trouble  in  the  land,  has  but  little 
influence  on  the  real  question  raised  by  such  immigration,  particu- 
larly in  the  United  States  and  in  the  British  Colonies.  Every 
government  is  bound  to  look  out  for  the  interests  of  its  working" 
classes,  especially  that  class  whose  earnings  bring  them  pretty 
close  to  the  standard  set  by  the  public  opinion  of  the  community 
as  the  irreducible  minimum.  In  the  United  States  and  in  Canada 
we  have  a  very  high  standard.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  the  average 
American  labourer  eats  meat  once  a  day.  It  is  our  aim  to  raise 
that  standard  not  to  lower  it.  Now  the  white  man  can  live  as 
the  yellow  man  does,  but  in  the  United  States  we  do  not  intend  to 
allow  that  undesirable  condition  to  materialize.  In  some  countries 
of  Europe — Italy  and  Spain — and  even  in  some  parts  of  France 
and  Germany,  meat  is  never  seen  by  the  peasant  classes,  and  in 
Italy  the  average  daily  expense  of  feeding  the  peasant  would 
come  unfavourably  near  to  that  of  China  and  Japan.  We  do  not 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEX  ,261 

want  to  accustom  our  people  to  any  such  living.     If  our  labouring 
classes  are  brought  into  free  competition  with  the  Asiatic,  that  is 
sure  to  be  the  result.     A  horde  of  these  people  entering  into  the 
country  could  quickly  drive  American  labour  to  the  wall,  and  with 
the  advantage  of  position  could  wait  their  turn  to  be  ousted.     It 
would  be  a  peaceful  conquest  of  the  land  in  which  the  conquered 
placed  in  the  hands  of  the  conqueror  the  very  weapon  to  which 
they   would   owe   their   defeat — their   own   high   standard.     The 
East  is  not  confronted  with  this  question  at  all.     Their  standard 
is  very  low  and  their  labouring  class  ensured  against  competition. 
Their  contact  with  the  western  world  is  merely  through  those 
agents  necessary  in  our  modern  commercial  system  of  barter  and 
exchange,  and  it  is  not  much  to  their  credit  that  their  spirit  of 
exclusion  has  been  dictated  by  race  prejudice.     There  is  not  much 
doubt  as  to  how  the.  Japanese  Government  would  solve  this  ques- 
tion, if  a  hundred  thousand  coolies  from  China  were  dumped  into 
the  former  Kwanto  to  compete  with  their  ricksha  men,  their  farm 
labourers,     their    carpenters,   masons,   and   many   minor  trades. 
Without  reference  to  the  diplomatic  casuistry  that  the  translation 
of  the  French  term  metier  can  give  rise  to  we  have  some  inkling  as 
to  how  the  Japanese  regard  this  question  themselves.     An  Im- 
perial Ordinance  as  to  subjects  and  citizens  of  non-treaty  powers, 
after  granting  to  foreigners  the  right  to  reside  where  they  please, 
engage  in  trade  and  business,  says  "  it  shall  not  be  lawful  for 
labourers  to  reside  or  carry  on  their  business  outside  the  places 
hitherto  used  as  foreign  settlements  or  zones  of  mixed  residence, 
unless  they  obtain  special  permission  "  and  further  on  it  defines 
the  term  labourer.     "  By  the  term  *  labourers  '  shall  be  understood 
persons  engaged  in  agriculture,  fishing,  mining,  engineering,  build- 
ing, manufacturing,  transportation,  jinricksha  drawing,  porteragey 
and  other  kinds  of  physical  toil  for  gain."     This  last  clause  is  a 
truly  Catholic  provision  for  eventualities  or  errors  of  omission. 
The  method  of  enforcement  of  the  Chinese  Exclusion  Act  in  the 
United   States  has  given   rise  to  much  just  complaint,  but  the 
Chinese  are  largely  responsible  for  it  themselves.     A  Chinese  cer- 


SAKURAMBO 

tificate  of  the  occupation  of  the  holder  is  worth  just  about  the 
paper  it  is  written  on  and  no  more,  and  for  this  only  their  own 
local  authorities  are  to  blame.  We  do  not  pretend  in  the  United 
States  to  settle  the  disputes  among  the  Chinese  themselves.  They 
rarely  call  on  us  to  do  so.  They  are  a  community  apart,  and  the 
imported  Chinaman  who  went  back  on  his  contract  would  not  live 
very  long  to  enjoy  the  fruits  of  his  cunning.  China  is  not  the 
only  country  with  which  the  United  States  has  disputes  on  this 
question.  The  legislation  to  keep  out  paupers,  criminals,  and 
diseased,  meets  with  every  possible  opposition  in  official  circles, 
and  in  Europe  agents  of  the  Immigration  Bureau  meet  with  any- 
thing but  a  cordial  welcome.  Experience  has  shown  us  that  the 
European  peoples  assimilate  and  form  part  of  ourselves.  Even 
with  them  in  some  cases  the  rules  are  so  strict  as  to  amount  to 
exclusion  of  whole  classes.  It  is  to  be  noted  that  the  Chinese  Ex- 
clusion Act  was  passed  after  due  trial  and  warning  of  the  con- 
tinued danger  of  such  immigration.  Three  hundred  years  ago 
it  was  the  aim  of  the  great  Henry  of  Bourbon  that  every  French- 
man should  be  able  to  have  his  chicken  in  the  pot.  Our  standard 
in  the  United  States  has  been  pushed  still  higher,  and  most  of  the 
other  countries  still  open  to  settlement  have  followed  the  example. 
China  moreover  is  the  last  country  in  the  world  to  raise  ques- 
tions of  exclusion,  when  we  come  to  consider  her  treaty  ports  with 
their  circumscribed  limits  for  the  activity  of  foreigners,  and  the 
necessity  for  elaborate  preparations  and  due  notice  to  the  authori- 
ties if  travel  in  the  interior  of  that  happy  land  is  to  be  undertaken. 
Besides,  she  sells  twice  where  she  buys  once,  and  is  not  likely  to 
quarrel  with  the  United  States  over  the  exclusion  of  the  coolies. 
The  broad  hand  of  "  Uncle  Sam  "  has  had  no  little  to  do  with 
smothering  those  whispers  of  "  spheres  of  influence  "  so  often 
heard  a  few  years  ago.  The  Japanese  Government  now  controls 
very  strictly  the  emigration  of  its  coolie  class.  There  were  prob- 
ably reasons  of  high  politics  that  sent  thousands  of  coolies  to 
Hawaii,  to  the  United  States,  to  Mexico  and  Peru,  and  everywhere 
but  to  northeastern  Asia.  One  hears  much  nowadays  of  the  "  yel- 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEX  26-3 

low  peril,"  a  subject  well  worthy  of  attention  though  not  immedi- 
ately threatening.  There  is  a  "  yellow  peril  "  but  not  until  the 
three  hundred  millions  of  Chinese  wake  up  and  conclude  to  but- 
tress their  economic  efficiency  with  physical  force,  with  armies 
and  navies  trained  in  western  schools.  There  will  probably  never 
be  another  Attila  or  Genghis  Khan.  In  science  too  many  men 
are  everywhere  closely  following  the  same  lines  of  investigation 
as  to  make  an  isolated  discovery  of  world-wide  importance  akin  to 
and  of  the  revolutionary  nature  of  that  of  gunpowder.  Great 
discoveries  are  always  foreshadowed  in  these  times.  In  former 
days  the  world's  business  was  mainly  fighting,  now  it  is  mainly 
-working.  The  struggle  between  East  and  West  will  be  based  on 
economic  grounds  which,  however,  may  seek  an  issue  by  resort  to 
arms.  It  will  be  a  war  for  the  world's  markets  rather  than  a 
struggle  of  nations  seeking  an  outlet  for  their  superfluous  popu- 
lation. How  far  the  Japanese  will  dare  to  arm  their  big  neighbour 
remains  to  be  seen.  An  armed,  independent,  and  centralized 
China  would  mean  short  shrift  to  the  present  position  of  Japan  in 
northern  Asia.  It  is  to  be  suspected  that  much  more  would  the 
sound  of  "  spheres  of  influence  "  tickle  their  ears,  and  the  develop- 
ment of  Japan  as  a  great  continental  powrer  is  the  only  point  at 
which  she  is  to  be  feared.  That  is  quite  possible,  although  whether 
it  is  to  be  regarded  as  a  yellow  peril  is  open  to  some  question. 
Never  did  a  brave  and  ambitious  people  so  completely  lack  natural 
resources  to  carry  out  their  dream  of  supremacy.  Japan  is  poor  in 
that  very  thing  that  makes  nations  great  in  these  latter  days.  She 
has  no  iron.  Thirty  thousand  tons  form  her  quota  to  the  world's 
production  in  a  year,  and  her  geology  does  not  favour  the  idea 
that  her  condition  will  be  found,  on  further  investigation,  to  be 
materially  bettered  in  this  respect.  She  must  depend  on  other 
countries  to  feed  her  furnaces.  A  footing  in  northeastern  Asia 
would  change  this  and  would  put  in  her  hands  the  great  deposits 
of  northern  China  which  contain,  as  far  as  known,  some  of  the 
finest  Bessemer  ore  in  the  world.  The  stakes  played  for  in  north- 
eastern Asia  are  well  worth  the  winning,  and  the  victor  well  worth 


264  SAKURAMBO 

the  watching.  When  the  battle  between  West  and  East  does  come 
it  will  be  a  merciless  one,  for  it  will  be  a  contest  between  civiliza- 
tions radically  different  in  their  bases ;  between  which  there  can  be 
substitution  not  compromise,  and  in  which  the  conquered,  im- 
mersed in  a  medium  foreign  to  his  nature  will  die  of  of  inanition. 
A  cold-bloodecl  clash  such  as  Mr.  Wells  has  drawn  for  us  in  his 
''War  of  the  Worlds" — the  Martians  and  the  World  People. 
The  great  Napoleon  prophesied  the  division  of  the  world  between 
Slav  and  Republic  and  time  can  well  be  given  to  see  how  the  pre- 
diction works  out,  although  Slav  by  no  means  excludes  the  idea 
of  Republic.  A  third  formidable  factor  has  risen — Mongol.  Slav 
and  Mongol,  not  Slav  and  Anglo-Saxon,  have  clashed  first,  and 
the  rest  of  the  world  can  look  on  with  indifference.  The  Slav 
has  been  checked  in  this  first  contest,  as  much  by  conditions  as  by 
his  own  fault,  and  Anglo-Saxondom  at  all  events  cannot  grumble 
at  the  outcome,  provided  that  Mongol  balances  Slav  and  is  not  sub- 
stituted for  him.  That  great  people  of  eastern  Europe  have  not 
been  waked  up.  as  yet,  and  under  their  present  regime  cannot  be. 
In  mass  they  much  resemble  China,  but  with  a  fierce  national 
feeling  not  found  among  the  Chinese.  One  cannot  help  admiring 
that  intensity  which  in  Austria  and  the  Balkan  provinces  forbids 
any  compromise  with  other  races,  but  obstinately  looks  forward 
to  the  domination  of  the  Slav  race.  Disagreeable  as  such  an  out- 
come would  be  the  supremacy  of  Slav  is  to  be  preferred  to  that  of 
Mongol.  We  know  something  about  his  qualifications  and  can 
judge  something  as  to  the  result.  His  Tolstoi  and  his  Turgenieff 
appeal  to  us  as  do  our  own  writers.  In  science  and  art  and  relig- 
ion he  has  at  least  one  foot  in  Europe.  It  is  the  bureaucracy  of 
Russia  that  is  dreaded — that  hideous  and  cruel  incubus  that  crushes 
out  all  breath  of  liberty  and  gives  rise  to  such  nightmares  as 
nihilism  and  anarchy — but  the  bureaucracy  in  Russia  is  not  neces- 
sarily an  institution  of  a  people  who  have  a  genius  much  to  be 
admired. 

Next  to  my  inn  at  Miyaji  and  right  under  my  eyes  was  a  large 
temple.    Miyaji  has  a  very  rustic  appearance  embowered  in  its  many 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEX  265 

trees.  Far  beyond,  the  great  wall  of  the  crater  cuts  off  the  out- 
side world  leaving  one  even  rim  of  horizon  as  at  sea.  The  temple, 
though  so  situated  in  the  midst  of  the  little  town,  had  all  the 
advantages  of  situation  and  something  of  a  pretence  of  a  village 
green.  The  lines  of  the  Japanese  roof  are  very  beautiful.  Even 
an  ugly  town  is  a  constant  source  of  pleasure  to  one  looking  from 
above.  The  same  cannot  be  said  as  to  their  general  use  of  wood. 
The  aspect  of  a  Swiss  or  Norway  village,  or  the  half  timber  work 
of  some  old  French  or  English  towns,  is  far  more  picturesque  than 
anything  of  similar  nature  in  Japan.  We  do  not  have  to  go  to 
Japan  for  lessons  in  wood  carving.  The  carving  at  Nikko  is 
very  handsome,  although  I  think  most  Europeans  will  take  at  least 
equal  pleasure  in  that  of  the  Haruna  temple  near  Ikao,  but  most  of 
us  will  give  the  preference  to  the  beautiful  stall  and  screen  work 
found  in  so  many  European  churches  and  cathedrals. 

The  people  of  the  inn  were  by  no  means  such  early  risers  as  is 
usually  found  in  Japanese  inns.  It  was  nearly  eight  o'clock  before 
the  rain  doors  were  pushed  back,  but  an  hour  later  I  was  again  on 
my  way  along  the  shaded  road,  or  rather  what  would  have  been 
the  shaded  road,  for  the  first  part  of  my  journey  was  made  in 
a  downpour.  The  valley  is  drained  on  this  side  so  we  made  our 
exit  by  the  side  of  the  Shirakawa  flowing  into  the  Shimabara  Gulf, 
near  the  city  of  Kumamoto.  We  were  soon  amid  pretty  valley 
scenery  again,  the  way  being  all  down-hill  to  the  tree-dotted  plain 
on  which  Kumamoto  lies.  To  judge  from  the  rather  unfavourable 
way  in  which  many  foreigners  speak  of  it  as  a  dusty,  dirty  town, 
Kumamoto  belies  its  appearance,  for  there  is  far  more  green  about 
in  the  way  of  trees  than  is  found  in  most  large  Japanese  cities, 
it  rejoices  in  two  excellent  Yadoyas,  one  of  which  is  so  up  to  date 
as  to  be  supplied  with  a  billiard  room.  It  is  possible  to  cross  from 
here  to  Shiobara  and  walk  up  the  mountain  to  Unzen,  which  stands 
2500  feet  above  sea  level  and  which  means  just  that  much  climb. 
It  is  equally  feasible  to  take  train  to  Isehaya  and  by  a  pretty 
ricksha  ride  to  Obama  and  from  there  walk  up  the  mountain. 
These  Kyushu  resorts  do  not  compare  favourably  with  those  of 


SAKURAMBO 

the  Tokyo  district,  which  can  be  described  as  "  the  cream  "  of 
Japan.  Unzen  is  on  a  very  uneasy  seat,  and  if  the  safety  valve  at 
Asosan  should  become  plugged  up  it  is  quite  on  the  cards  that 
Unzen  would  be  the  point  of  least  resistance  and  depart  for  parts 
unknown,  leaving  nothing  but  a  little  stinking  sulphurous  smoke 
and  reputation  behind  it.  It  is  a  great  health  resort  and  has 
several  European  hotels  largely  frequented  by  Europeans  from 
the  China  ports.  There  are  hot  pools  and  tiny  geysers  and  beauti- 
ful walks  in  the  neighbourhood,  but  even  in  early  June  it  was  very 
hot  during  the  day  although  the  nights  were  pleasant.  Up  to 
that  time  Obama  on  the  seashore  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain  holds 
many  of  the  people.  This,  too,  is  a  bathing  resort,  in  some  ways 
an  attractive  little  place,  especially  as  it  makes  no  pretence  at 
business  of  any  kind. 

A  little  steamer  ran  daily  from  Obama  to  Mogi  and  on  this 
craft  I  saw  the  only  really  decent  pigs  I  have  seen  in  Japan.  Pigs 
of  an  avoirdupois  that  Chicago  would  be  glad  to  acknowledge.  I 
was  told  that  they  came  from  China  in  which  case  someone  was 
enterprising  enough  to  try  and  improve  the  native  stock.  Of  our 
ordinary  farm  stock  you  see  little  in  Japan.  It  is  rare  to  see  any 
kind  of  pig  in  the  villages.  Sheep,  grazing  cattle,  mules,  are  the 
rarities  of  an  enclosure  more  of  the  nature  of  a  zoological  garden. 
Chickens,  dogs,  and  cats,  are  the  only  familiar  features  of  animal 
life  familiar  to  European  eyes.  Once  in  Mogi  it  is  but  an  hour's 
run  across  the  hill  to  Nagasaki.  The  home  of  Madame  Chrysan- 
theme  is  entirely  distinct  and  apart  from  the  other  treaty  ports  of 
Japan.  It  is  most  picturesque  on  its  hills  overlooking  its  beautiful 
harbour,  but  there  the  attraction  ceases.  From  May  on  it  is  hot 
and  stinking.  Its  coolies  are  the  roughest  and  dirtiest  in  Japan. 
Its  sailors'  hotels  and  bars  with  their  "  hurdy-gurdies,"  barrel 
organs,  and  bouncers  as  a  conspicuous  feature,  mark  it  out  for  the 
"  man-of-war  "  town  of  the  islands.  One  must  say  with  regret 
that  the  place  which  has  had  longest  contact  with  Europe  in  the 
shape  of  its  shipping  is  the  most  undesirable  town  in  Japan. 
Nagasaki  gives  a  very  false  impression  of  Japan.  It  is  cosmopoli- 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEX  267 

tan  in  a  crude  bucolic  way.  Cosmopolitan  as  were  the  buccaneers 
of  old.  At  a  little  distance  lies  the  great  naval  port  of  Saseho 
with  its  lines  of  warships.  In  Nagasaki  at  the  drydock  lies  a 
great  steamer  of  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kwaisha.  The  plates  of  both 
came  from  foreign  lands  in  such  ships  as  crowd  the  harbour  lying 
under  our  eyes.  When  Japan,  as  the  result  of  a  great  national 
industry  and  out  of  her  own  iron,  makes  those  plates,  Saseho  will 
be  far  more  formidable  than  it  is  to-day. 


VIII 


THE  LAND  OF  YAMATO 

"  When  the  funeral  pyre  was  out,  and  the  last  valediction 
over,  men  took  a  lasting  adieu  of  their  interred  friends, 
little  expecting  the  curiosity  of  future  ages  should  com- 
ment upon  their  ashes ;  and,  having  no  old  experience  of 
the  duration  of  their  relics,  held  no  opinion  of  such  after 
considerations.  But  who  knows  the  fate  of  his  bones,  or 
how  often  he  is  to  be  buried?  Who  hath  the  oracle  of 
his  ashes,  or  whether  they  are  to  be  scattered." 

— Urn  Burial. 

I  am  standing  on  the  terrace  of  Miidera  looking  down  on 
Biwa  Lake  shining  in  the  sun.  The  terrace  is  a  delightful  place 
on  the  hot  July  day  and  the  cool  breeze  sweeping  over  it  a  reward 
for  the  stiff  climb  to  get  up  to  it.  The  temple  is  an  old  foundation 
dating  from  the  close  of  the  seventh  century  in  the  time  of  the 
Emperor  Tenji  of  whom  that  old  collection  of  Dry-as-Dust  the  O 
Dai  Ichiran*  says  "  he  loved  the  sciences,  and  the  administration 
of  public  affairs  and  justice  were  under  his  rule  established  on  a 
regular  and  stable  basis."  The  present  set  of  buildings  are  any- 
thing but  veterans,  however,  for  they  only  date  from  the  end  of  the 
seventeenth  century.  Otsu  lies  just  below  and  very  glad  am  I  to 
get  away  from  it,  for  I  remember  it  mainly  by  a  very  indifferent 
inn.  To  the  left  on  the  shores  of  the  lake  is  what  looks  like  a 
grove  of  pines,  but  which  in  fact  is  a  single  tree,  the  great  pine  of 
Karasaki,  one  of  those  venerable  abortions  referred  to  in  the  first 
chapter.  It  is  said  to  be  ninety  feet  in  height,  although  one  would 

*The  O  Dai  Ichiran  has  been  translated  by  Klaproth.  Checked  up  on 
material  points  from  other  sources  there  is  a  good  deal  of  meat  to  be  scraped 
off  its  old  bones.  I  am  also  indebted  to  Professor  B.  H.  Chamberlain's  trans- 
lation and  particularly  the  notes  and  preface  to  the  Kojishi.  Anyone  who 
wishes  to  read  the  last  word  on  the  early  nebulous  history  of  the  Japanese  must 
have  recourse  to  this  translation.  It  is  published  separately  as  the  supplement 
to  vol.  x  of  the  Transactions  of  the  Asiatic  Society  of  Japan. 

268 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEX  269 

never  suspect  it,  and  its  branches  in  two  directions  extend  a  dis 
tance  of  nearly  a  hundred  yards  which  can  readily  be  believed. 
Its  bark  is  almost  hidden  by  its  plastered  wounds,  and  the  props  to 
its  old  age  make  it  resemble  some  distorted  banyan  whose  subsid- 
iary aerial  roots  have  subsequently  dried  and  withered.  The  road 
to  it  is  too  hot  and  sunny  on  this  summer  day,  and  I  turn  with 
relief  to  seek  shade  in  the  beautiful  groves  surrounding  the  shrines. 
These  have  a  romance  entirely  apart  from  the  ecclesiastical  associ- 
ations, for  we  hear  much  of  Benkei,  the  giant  retainer  of  Yosh- 
itsune,  the  brother  of  Yoritomo,  first  of  the  Minamoto  Shoguns 
and  of  the  warrior  class,  who  supplanted  the  more  effeminate  Fuji- 
wara  as  mayors  of  the  palace.  Benkei  appeals  much  to  the  imag- 
ination of  western  readers.  There  is  a  joviality,  an  open-handed, 
open-hearted,  debonair  touch  to  most  of  his  exploits  not  found  in  the 
usual  run  of  the  Japanese  heroes.  His  cunning  is  mainly  free 
from  that  tinge  of  treachery  and  double  dealing  with  double 
meaning  so  common  in  the  East.  He  is  a  sort  of  Little  John,  Will 
Scarlet,  and  Friar  Tuck,  rolled  into  one;  and  his  master,  Yoshit- 
sune, is  the  Japanese  Black  Prince  or  Henry  V.,  and  whom  we 
would  gladly  see  supplant  his  cold  and  crafty  brother  at  Kama- 
kura.  Benkei  and  Yoshitsune  first  met  on  a  bridge  in  Kyoto  when 
Benkei  proposed  to  the  unknown  stripling  that  he  should  con- 
tribute what  his  present  circumstances  permitted  to  the  lining  of 
Benkei's  purse.  In  the  fight  that  ensued  Benkei  got  the  worst  of 
it,  and  ever  after  attached  himself  to  Yoshitsune's  adventurous 
fortunes.  These  have  been  the  theme  of  a  number  of  books  for 
the  young  Japanese,  and  Benkei  figures  in  them  almost  as  much  as 
Yoshitsune.  \Ye  have  proof  of  his  prowess  here  at  Miidera,  for 
in  one  building  is  kept  the  temple  bell  which  he  carried  off,  and 
only  restored  on  condition  that  the  monks  fill  a  huge  iron  caldron 
of  equal  size  with  bean  soup.  The  marks  of  Benkei's  teeth  are 
new  shown  on  the  edge  of  the  caldron. 

But  Benkei  is  by  no  means  the  only  militant  feature  of  these 
hillsides,  for  it  was  on  Hiesan  that  Denkiotaishi  founded  at  the 
beginning  of  the  ninth  century  a  monastery  of  the  Tendai  sect  of 


270  SAKURAMBO 

Buddhists,  and  in  the  course  of  years  they  were  dotted  with  temple 
buildings,  the  strongholds  of  military  orders  of  monks  which  can 
only  be  compared  to  the  great  military  monastic  orders  of  Europe. 
The  monks,  ruled  things  with  a  high  hand,  and  time  and  again 
harried  the  country  roundabout,  fighting  out  their  quarrels  in  the 
streets  of  Kyoto  and  burning  down  half  the  town  in  the  process. 
For  three  hundred  years  they  were  regular  visitants  here  at 
Miidera.  The  place  was  attacked  and  burnt  to  the  ground  in 
1 08 1  and  regularly  during  the  course  of  a  century  it  suffered  a  like 
fate.  These  monks  had  the  same  reputation  for  fierce  courage, 
learning,  and  brutality  as  the  Templars  of  old,  of  whom  the  people 
whispered  tales  of  their  lust  and  nameless  crimes  as  they  clanked 
through  the  streets  on  their  great  war  horses.  It  was  not  until 
Nobunaga  had  established  his. power  in  the  State  that  he  dared  to 
attack  "  these  pestilent  monks,"  and  September,  1571,  saw  a  great 
battle  on  the  slopes  of  these  mountains  in  which  the  monks,  driven 
back  inch  by  inch  by  the  overwhelming  numbers  of  their  adversary, 
finally  perished  in  the  flames  of  their  monasteries  and  wiped  out  the 
remembrance  of  their  crimes  with  their  blood.  But  Biwa-ko,  or 
better  the  Lake  of  Omi,  has  a  better  ground  to  fame  than  attaches 
to  priestly  masters.  There  is  a  legend  that  at  the  beginning  of 
the  reign  of  the  Emperor  Ko-rei  (286  B.  C.)  there  was  a  great 
earthquake  and  eruption  during  which  Fujisan  was  thrown  up 
and  a  depression  formed  here  in  the  South.  At  all  events,  since 
the  very  earliest  clays,  while  Yamato  has  been  the  scene  of  the 
exploits  of  its  emperors,  much  is  heard  of  the  Lake  of  Omi,  and  as 
literature  and  song  were  advanced  it  figures  more  and  more  largely 
in  such  literature,  so  much  so  as  to  almost  make  it  a  centre  for 
Japanese  men  of  letters.  The  Kwanto,  or  present  Tokyo  district, 
was  a  frontier  land  far  from  all  the  finer  influences  shed  from 
the  emperor's  court  at  Kyoto,  a  centre  of  rough  soldiers  engaged 
in  warfare  with  each  other  and  with  the  savages  still  pressing  on 
them  to  the  north.  It  is  not  until  Yoritomo  fixed  his  capital  at 
Kamakura  that  the  northern  country  cuts  any  polite  figure  in  Jap- 
anese history.  We  have  already  spoken  of  the  absence  of  antiquity 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEN  271 

in  most  Japanese  landscapes.  Perhaps  this  very  Go-Kinai  district 
is  as  good  an  instance  as  can  be  selected.  Here  is  the  very  centre 
of  Japanese  life.  The  umbilicus,  so  to  speak,  around  which  the 
nation  lived  its  life  for  so  many  centuries,  shows  but  little  sign  of 
that  life.  Nara  and  Kyoto  are  all  that  are  left  of  the  very  ancient 
days.  Even  then  much  is  of  fourteenth  century  and  later.  One 
can  well  speak  of  this,  for  so  much  is  heard  of  the  antiquity  of 
Japanese  life.  There  are  literally  scores  of  fine  manor  houses 
scattered  all  over  England,  contemporaries  and  far  older  than 
these  fourteenth  century  buildings.  Old  castles  dating  from  Nor- 
man times  have  worked  into  their  foundations  the  previous  struc- 
ture built  by  the  Roman  masters  of  the  world,  utilized  by  their  suc- 
cessors, and  still  sheltering  present  owners.  There  are  old  county 
families  living  on  the  ground  occupied  by  their  ancestors  from 
Saxon  times  and  that  on  the  very  good  historical  record  of  title 
deeds;  and  some  Welsh  genealogies  will  satisfy  the  seeker  after 
still  dimmer  tradition,  for  they  go  back  to  Adam  and  sometimes 
to  his  Maker.  Equal  credit  can  be  claimed  for  these  old  county 
families  with  any  Fujiwara,  or  Taira,  or  Minamoto,  that  figures  in 
the  Kojiki  and  trod  the  soil  of  Yamato.  But  if  we  mean  to  get  on 
to  the  subject  of  the  antiquities  of  "  things  Japanese  "  it  is  time  to 
change  our  ground,  so  I  come  down  the  shady  groves  of  Miidera 
to  the  dusty  level  of  the  town,  stopping  a  moment  to  watch  the 
boats  on  the  canal  dug  centuries  ago  and  which  leads  through  (not 
over)  the  mountains  to  the  level  of  the  Kyoto  plain,  and  gladly 
picking  up  my  traps  at  the  inn,  am  off  across  country  to  Yamada, 
the  holy,  to  the  temples  of  Ise,  where  Ama-terasu-oho-mi-kami, 
the  Heaven  shining  Great  August  Deity,  the  sun  goddess,  has  her 
shrine,  and  to  which  Japanese  Mecca  all  true  Japanese  hearts  are 
turned. 

It  is  cross  country  to  Yamada,  and  cross  country  in  Japan 
means  much  what  it  does  everywhere  else,  a  series  of  changes  at 
short  intervals  in  which  more  time  is  spent  at  junction  stations  than 
on  the  train.  The  ride  was  rather  a  dull  one  until  running  south 
on  the  line  that  terminates  at  Yamada.  I  found  the  town  in  one  of 


SAKURAMBO 

its  quiet  periods,  there  being  comparatively  few  pilgrims  visible 
tramping  the  streets.  The  temples  are  given  a  great  age  by  the 
Japanese,  carrying  them  back  to  the  legendary  period  of  Suinin 
(29  B.  C.-70  A.  D.),  who  charged  his  daughter  Princess  Yamato 
to  build  a  temple  to  Tenshi  Dai j  in,  the  sun  goddess,  on  the  banks 
of  the  Goyusugawa  in  Ise,  which  since  then  has  been  the  centre 
of  the  Shinto  cult.  The  temples  are  doubly  interesting  therefore 
as  the  external  expression  of  a  national  faith.  We  cannot  give 
Shinto  a  very  high  rank  as  a  religion.  Its  central  idea  has  none 
of  that  grandeur  that  is  an  attribute  of  the  central  ideas  of  the 
great  world  religions — Brahminism,  Buddhism,  Judaism  and 
Christianity  and  Mohammedanism — and  which  is  so  grandly  ex- 
pressed in  their  architecture.  Shinto  is  a  strictly  local  creed,  so 
wrapped  up  in  the  nationality  of  its  worshippers  that  it  can  have 
no  extension  beyond  them.  In  fact,  it  is  a  worship  of  the  en- 
shrined nation.  Mr.  Lowell,  in  his  "  Occult  Japan,"  calls  attention 
to  the  fact  that  Japanese  holy  places  have  no  foreign  worshippers. 
They  are  not  the  goal  of  thousands  of  pilgrims  from  other  lands. 
They  could  not  have  them.  Only  the  land  itself  can  be  interested 
in  its  own  ancestors,  and  the  holy  places  of  other  creeds  are  in 
other  lands.  Shinto  shows  its  limitations  in  this  external  exposi- 
tion of  its  spirits.  The  temples  are  simply  an  exaggeration  of  the, 
native  architecture.  They  are  supposed  to  represent  accurately 
the  shape  and  material  of  the  original  native  hut  so  completely  does 
this  nation  worship  the  past.  They  are  destroyed  every  twenty 
years  and  re-erected  on  an  alternate  site  adjoining  each  temple. 
As  the  wind  waves  the  white  curtain  hung  in  front  of  the  mon 
or  great  gate  one  gets  glimpses  of  the  exterior.  It  is  doubtful, 
even  if  they  were  accessible  to  the  public  and  the  infidel,  whether 
there  would  be  anything  to  see.  The  main  thing  about  them  is 
their  spirit;  and  the  beautiful  sweep  of  the  thatched  roofs,  with 
the  towering  cryptomerias,  leave  one  with  the  impression  that  he 
has  been  in  touch  with  the  religious  sense  of  a  curious  people. 
One  can  well  remove  his  hat  as  he  stands  before  the  white  curtain 
scantily  concealing  the  soul  of  this  people  as  shown  in  their  holiest 
of  holies. 


FROM    BUXGO    TO    HIZEX 

We  can  leave  the  religious  side,  however,  to  take  up  the  less 
pleasing  side  of  history  wherein  the  foreign  grubber  complains  so 
strenuously  that  he  finds  more  romance  than  fact.  History  made 
to  order  is  not  very  considerately  regarded  in  the  more  truthful 
West,  and  one  can  hardly  help  something  of  a  smile  when  he  reads 
in  a  Japanese  author  that  historical  research  as  such  was  not 
known  in  Japan,  their  historians  all  bearing  an  official  character. 
The  revision  and  "  correction  "  of  previous  records  is  a  frequent 
occurrence  noted  in  the  old  chronicle,  and  emperors  and  ministers 
take  a  fatherly  interest  that  the  offspring  of  their  brain  should 
be  of  credit  to  them.  The  old  chroniclers  therefore  wrote — alas 
had  to  write — with  the  immediate  object  of  their  employers  in 
view.  They  have  all  the  enthusiasm  of  monkish  scribes  of  old, 
and  had  as  little  scruple  about  altering  a  date  or  embroidering  their 
tales  as  in  our  historical  novels.  In  fact,  the  more  official  the  man, 
the  more  we  are  inclined  to  look  sharply  into  his  local  colouring, 
even  of  facts.  One  calls  to  mind  those  lines  of  Burns : 

"  Some  books  are  lies  frae  end  to  end, 
And  some  great  lies  were  never  penned; 
Ev'n  ministers,  they  hae  been  kenned, 

In    holy    rapture, 
A  rousing  whid,  at  times,  to  vend, 

And  nail't  with  Scripture." 

Previous  to  the  Christian  era  we  have  no  reason  to  believe  that  the 
Japanese  were  anything  but  a  congeries  of  scattered  clans.  By 
degrees  one  of  these  obtained  the  supremacy.  It  is  fair  to  pre- 
sume from  what  followed  the  introduction  of  Chinese  learning  and 
especially  Buddhism,  at  the  close  of  the  fifth  and  middle  of  the 
sixth  centuries,  that  their  condition  was  decidedly  less  advanced 
than  that  of  their  Korean  neighbours  who  for  some  centuries  had 
been  subjected  to  Chinese  influence,  at  times  under  actual  conquest 
in  north  Korea  and  always  by  contact  through  Manchuria.  The 
Chinese  have  given  us  a  picture  of  Korea  as  they  knew  it  in  the 
two  centuries  preceding  and  following  our  era ;  a  picture  of  a 
primitive  people  living  in  mud  huts,  ruled  over  by  petty  chiefs,  but 
18 


274  SAKURAMBO 

possessed  of  the  arts  of  agriculture,  weaving  and  iron  making,  and 
skilful  in  the  chase  and  in  making  use  of  the  skins  of  the  animals 
that  they  killed.  During  this  period  the  Japanese  had  frequent 
communication  with  Korea,  mainly  in  the  form  of  piratical  raids, 
but  it  was  not  until  later,  at  the  end  of  the  fifth  century,  that  they 
shared  more  positively  in  the  advantages  which  their  Korean 
neighbours  had  been  drawing  from  their  civilized  neighbour  China, 
and  Korea  stands  at  least  a  couple  of  centuries  in  advance  of 
Japan.  At  the  end  of  the  fifth  century  the  Chinese  books  were 
formally  introduced  into  Japan.  The  best  authorities  all  reject 
the  idea  of  a  native  Japanese  script  existing  before  this  period; 
the  only  means  existing  in  earlier  times  of  handing  down  to  pos- 
terity the  records  of  the  past  was  by  oral  tradition.  Between  the 
formal  introduction  of  the  Chinese  books,  however,  and  the  publi- 
cation of  the  earliest  extant  work  on  Japanese  history — the  Kojiki 
—it  is  fair  to  presume  that  the  Chinese  ideograph  had  come  into 
general  use  and  was  used  in  compiling  current  records  and  in 
putting  in  more  permanent  form  past  tradition.  The  Kojiki 
(687-712  A.  D.)  hints  at  this,  and  although  the  writer  says  he 
took  it  clown  from  the  mouth  of  the  learned  Hiyeda-no-Are,  the 
man  with  the  india  rubber  memory  selected  by  the  Emperor 
Temmu  to  thoroughly  memorize  the  wise  saws  and  events  of 
former  days,  we  will  give  him  credit  for  some  documentary 
corroboration  in  front  of  him  at  the  time  he  wrote.  As  to  his 
own  production  the  less  said  the  better.  Someone  in  the  presence 
of  Coleridge  happened  to  refer  to  Klopstock  as  the  German  Milton. 
!  And  a  very  German  Milton  "  quoth  Coleridge.  The  Kojiki  can 
perhaps  be  classed  as  the  Japanese  Homer — and  a  very  Japanese 
Homer  it  is.  Professor  Chamberlain  in  his  introduction  tells  us 
that  as  ki  the  '  Records  '  sound  bald  and  queer  in  English,  so  they 
sound  queer  and  bald  in  Japanese."  They  are  made  up  of  folk- 
lore tales  and  legends  of  the  gods  bound  together  by  long-winded 
genealogies,  which  frankly  seem  to  be  nothing  but  a  nexus,  arti- 
ficially adopted  by  the  writer  to  bind  his  work  into  some  sort  of 
semblance  to  an  organic  whole,  matter  that  previously  had  no  real 
connection. 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  275 

Japanese  mythology  does  not  err  on  the  side  of  modesty. 
The  Age  of  the  Gods  is  divided  into  two  periods,  one  of  a  thousand 
million  years,  the  other  of  836,702,  and  it  is  a  pity  that  in  this 
last  the  days  and  hours  also  are  not  given.  If  we  can  trust  to 
such  computation  all  our  geological  problems  are  easily  settled, 
for  it  can  include  the  requirements  of  the  most  extravagant 
evolutionist.  It  is  noticeable  that  the  Japanese  do  not  attempt 
any  ultimate  explanation  of  the  universe.  Chaos  exists,  and  it  is 
out  of  this  chaos  that  the  early  gods  are  born  only  to  disappear 
again,  "  hide  their  persons — i.e.,  died."  They  have  no  apparent 
connection  with  each  other.  Their  propagation  is  cosmical  not 
carnal.  They  come  and  go,  and  as  far  as  the  writer  of  the  Kojiki 
is  concerned,  merely  furnish  an  introduction  to  his  more  serious 
matter.  It  will  be  well  to  give  one  of  the  shortest  of  these 
genealogies.  It  is  typical  of  the  nexi  binding  the  book  together, 
whether  at  this  point  or  at  its  close  when  devoted  to  the  affairs 
of  the  more  earthly  emperors.  Some  of  them  run  on  page  follow- 
ing page  in  monotonous  succession.  The  following  is  Professor 
Chamberlain's  translation  of  "  the  Seven  Divine  Generations " : 
'  The  names  of  the  Deities  that  were  born  next  were  the  Earthly- 
Eternally-Standing-Deity,  next  the  Luxuriant-Integrating  Master- 
Deity.  These  two  Deities  were  likewise  Deities  born  alone,  and 
hid  their  persons.  The  names  of  the  Deities  that  were  born  next 
were  the  Deity  Mud-Earth-Lord,  next  his  younger  sister  the  Deity 
Mud-Earth-Lady ;  next  the  Germ-Integrating-Deity ,  next  his 
younger  sister  the  Life-Integrating-Deity ;  next  the  Deity  Elder- 
of-the-Great-Place,  next  his  younger  sister  the  Deity  Elder-Lady- 
of-the-Great- Place ;  next  the  Deity  Perfect-Exterior,  next  his 
younger  sister  the  Deity  Oh- Awful-Lady ;  next  the  Deity  the 
Male-Who-Invites,  next  his  younger  sister  the  Deity  the  Female- 
\Yho-Invites."  It  is  hard  to  class  these  genealogies.  They  have 
far  less  value  than  their  nearest  prototype,  the  genealogies  of  the 
Book  of  Pantagruel,  without,  it  may  be  added,  the  touches  of 
pungent  wit  with  which  from  time  to  time  Rabelais  enlivened  these 
latter.  Homer's  "  Catalogue  of  the  Ships  "  is  cheerful  to  them. 


276  SAKURAMBO 

With  Izana-gi-no-kami,  the  Deity  the  Male-Who-Invites,  and 
Izana-mi-no-kami,  the  Deity  the  Female- Who-Invites,  we  enter 
OTI  the  more  interesting  if  nebulous  second  period  of  the  gods. 
One  thing  to  be  noted  is  the  relationship  of  this  pair.  Whether 
this  is  an  old  tradition  adopted  as  a  gloss  to  cover  a  similar 
relationship  still  in  favour  well  in  the  period  of  men  is  beyond 
conjecture.  It  is  certainly  the  case  that  with  the  legendary  em- 
perors such  a  relation  was  not  regarded  as  unusual,  and  the  term 
"  sister  and  wife  of  Jove  "  could  well  be  read  into  most  of  the 
annals  of  those  days. 

With  Izanagi  and  Izanami  the  action  advances.  Standing  on 
the  Bridge  of  Heaven,  they  pushed  down  the  jewelled  spear*  and 
stirred  with  it,  curdling  the  brine  and  thereby  forming  an  island. 
On  this  they  descend,  and  by  carnal  copulation  give  rise  to  the 
various  islands  forming  the  Japanese  archipelago,  and  subse- 
quently to  a  list  of  Deities  implying  a  nature  worship  devoted  to 
articles  more  or  less  useful.  The  last  of  these,  the  Fire-Burning- 
Swift-Male-Deity,  causes  the  death  of  his  mother,  thereby  arousing 
the  wrath  of  Izanagi,  who  cuts  off  the  head  of  the  offending^  infant, 
and  thereby  giving  occasion  to  the  author  of  the  Kojiki  to  string 
out  a  few  more  pages  of  similar  matter.  Izanagi  is  much  over- 
come with  the  loss  of  his  wife  and  there  follows  an  Orpheus  and 
Eurydice  kind  of  tale.  It  will  be  well  to  compare  it  with  the 
charming  Greek  legend  or  to  Ulysses'  "  Descent  to  Hell,"  to  see 
how  Japan  and  Greece  have  handled  kindred  subjects  at  the  dawn 
of  literature.  It  is  a  little  long  but  it  has  the  added  advantage 
that  it  is  the  most  interesting  and  best  expressed  found  in  this 
ancient  record.  We  turn  again  to  Professor  Chamberlain's  trans- 
lation of  the  Kojiki. 

'Thereupon  [His  Augustness  the  Male-Who-Invites],  wish- 
ing to  meet  and  see  his  younger  sister  Her  Augustness  the  Female- 
Who-Invites,  followed  after  her  to  the  Land  of  Hades.  So  when 

*  Klaproth  says,  "  Les  commentateurs  disent  que  c'est  line  expression 
allegorique  pour  exprimer  1'idea  de  1'amour  et  de  1'attachement  des  deux  sexes ; 
que  ces  mots  designent  le  membre  viril." 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  277 

from  the  palace  she  raised  the  door  and  came  out  to  meet  him,  His 
Augustness  the  Male-Who-Invites  spoke,  saying :  '  Thine  August- 
ness  my  lovely  younger  sister !  the  lands  that  I  and  thou  made  are 
not  yet  finished  making ;  so  come  back !  Then  Her  Augustness 
the  Female-Who-Invites  answered,  saying :  '  Lamentable,  indeed, 
that  thou  earnest  not  sooner!  I  have  eaten  of  the  furnace  of 
Hades.  Nevertheless,  as  I  reverence  the  entry  here  of  Thine 
Augustness  my  lovely  elder  brother,  I  wish  to  return.  Moreover, 
I  will  discuss  it  particularly  with  the  Deities  of  Hades.  Look  not 
at  me!'  Having  thus  spoken,  she  went  back  inside  the  palace; 
and  as  she  tarried  there  very  long,  he  could  not  wait.  So  having 
taken  and  broken  off  one  of  the  end-teeth  of  the  multitudinous 
and  close-toothed  comb  stuck  in  the  august  left  bunch  [of  his 
hair],  he  lit  one  light  and  went  in  and  looked.  Maggots  were 
swarming,  and  [she  was]  rotting,  and  in  her  head  dwelt  the 
Great-Thunder,  in  her  breast  dwelt  the  Fire-Thunder,  in  her  belly 
dwelt  the  Black-Thunder,  in  her  private  parts  dwelt  the  Cleaving- 
Thunder,  in  her  left  hand  dwelt  the  Young-Thunder,  in  her  right 
hand  dwelt  the  Earth-Thunder,  in  her  left  foot  dwelt  the  Rum- 
blingThunder,  in  her  right  foot  dwelt  the  Couchant-Thunder : 
altogether  eight  Thunder-Deities  had  been  born  and  dwelt  there. 
Hereupon  his  Augustness  the  Male-Who-Invites,  overawed  at  the 
sight,  fled  back,  whereupon  his  younger  sister  Her  Augustness  the 
Female-Who-Invites,  said :  '  Thou  hast  put  me  to  shame,'  and  at 
once  sent  the  Ugly-Female-of-Hades  to  pursue  him.  So  His 
Augustness  the  Male-Who-Invites  took  his  black  august  head- 
dress and  cast  it  down,  and  it  instantly  turned  into  grapes.  While 
she  picked  them  up  and  ate  them,  he  fled  on ;  but  as  she  still  pur- 
sued him,  he  took  and  broke  the  multitudinous  and  close-toothed 
comb  in  the  right  bunch  [of  his  hair]  and  cast  it  down,  and  it 
instantly  turned  into  bamboo  sprouts.  While  she  pulled  them  up 
and  ate  them,  he  fled  on.  Again  later  [his  younger  sister]  sent 
the  eight  Thunder-Deities  with  a  thousand  and  five  hundred  war- 
riors of  Hades  to  pursue  him.  So  he,  drawing  the  ten-grasp 
sabr*e  that  was  augustly  girded  on  him,  fled  forward  brandishing 


278  SAKURAMBO 

it  in  his  back  hand ;  and  as  they  still  pursued,  he  took,  on  reaching 
the  base  of  the  Even  Pass  of  Hades,  three  peaches  that  were 
growing  at  its  base,  and  waited  and  smote  [his  pursuers  there- 
with], so  that  they  all  fled  back.  Then  His  Augustness  the  Male- 
Who-Invites  announced  to  the  peaches :  '  Like  as  ye  have  helped 
me,  so  must  ye  help  all  living  people  in  the  Central  Land  of  Reed- 
Plains  when  they  shall  fall  into  troublous  circumstances  and  be 
harassed ! ' — and  he  gave  [to  the  peaches]  the  designation  of 
Their  Augustnesses  Great-Divine-Fruit.  Last  of  all  his  younger 
sister  Her  Augustness  the  Princess- Who-Invites  came  out  herself 
in  pursuit.  So  he  drew  a  thousand-draught  rock,  and  [with  it] 
blocked  up  the  Even  Pass  of  Hades,  and  placed  the  rock  in  the 
middle;  and  they  stood  opposite  to  one  another  and  exchanged 
leave-takings ;  and  Her  Augustness  the  Female- Who-Invites  said  : 
*  My  lovely  elder  brother,  thine  Augustness !  If  thou  do  like  this, 
I  will  in  one  day  strangle  to  death  a  thousand  of  the  folks  of  thy 
land.'  Then  His  Augustness  the  Male- Who-Invites  replied:  '  My 
lovely  younger  sister,  Thine  Augustness!  If  thou  do  this,  I  will 
in  one  day  set  up  a  thousand  and  five  hundred  parturition-houses. 
In  this  manner  each  day  a  thousand  people  would  surely  die,  and 
each  day  a  thousand  and  five  hundred  people  would  surely  be 
born.'  So  Her  Augustness  the  Female- Who-Invites  is  called  the 
Great-Deity-of-Hades.  Again  it  is  said  that,  owing  to  her  having 
pursued  and  reached  [her  elder  brother],  she  is  called  the  Road- 
Reaching-Great-Deity.  Again  the  rock  with  which  he  blocked 
up  the  Pass  of  Hades  is  called  the  Great-Deity-of-the-Road-Turn- 
ing-Back,  and  again  it  is  called  the  Blocking-Great-Deity-of-the- 
Door-of-Hades,  so  what  was  called  the  Even-Pass-of-Hades  is 
now  called  the  Ifuya-Pass  in  the  Land  of  Idzumo."  Let  us  make, 
however,  our  exit  from  hell,  not  with  Izanagi  but  with  Ulysses. 
The  lines  are  from  Pope's  translation  and  the  old  Greek  poet  has 
not  gained  by  the  exchange. 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  279 

"  Curious  to  view  the  kings  of  ancient  days, 
The  mighty  dead  that  live  in  endless  praise, 
Resolved  I  stand ;  and  haply  had  surveyed 
T  he  godlike  Theseus,  and  Pirithous'  shade ; 
But  swarms  of  spectres  rose  from  deepest  hell, 
With  bloodless  visage,  and  with  hideous  yell. 
They  scream,  they  shriek ;  and  groans  and  dismal  sounds 
Stun  my  scared  ears,  and  pierce  hell's  utmost  bounds. 
No  more  my  heart  the  dismal  din  sustains, 
And  my  cold  blood  hangs  shivering  in  my  veins ; 
Lest   Gorgon,    rising   from   the   infernal   lakes, 
With  horrors  armed,  and  curls  of  hissing  snakes, 
Should  fix  me  stiffened  at  the  monstrous  sight, 
A  stony  image,  in  eternal  night ! 
Straight  from  the  direful  coast  to  purer  air 
I  speed  my  flight,  and  to  my  mates  repair. 
My  mates  ascend  the  ship ;  they  strike  their  oars ; 
The  mountains  lessen,  and  retreat  the  shores ; 
Swift   o'er  the   waves   we   fly ;  the   freshening  gales 
Sing  through  the  shrouds,  and  stretch  the  swelling  sails." 

Satisfying  ourselves  with  two  specimens  of  the  Kojiki  we  can 
pass  over  the  rest  of  the  Age  of  the  Gods  more  rapidly.  Izanagi 
as  he  emerges  from  the  land  of  pollution  purifies  himself  in  the 
river,  with  the  result  of  many  new  deities  being  born  from  his 
garments  and  his  members.  The  most  important  to  us  are  the 
Heaven  -  Shining  -  Great  -  August-Deity,  Amaterasu-oho-mi-kami, 
born  from  his  august  left  eye,  and  His-Brave-Swift-Impetuous- 
Male-Augustness,  Take-haya-Susa-no-wo-no-Mikoto,  born  from 
his  august  nose.  Izanagi  distributes  his  kingdom  among  his  off- 
spring. His  Swift-Impetuous-Male-Augustness  is  the  only  one 
who  sulks,  so  his  father  expels  "  with  a  divine  expulsion,"  what- 
ever that  is,  but  it  does  not  seem  to  affect  his  conduct  very  favour- 
ably. He  visited  his  sister  the  Sun  Goddess,  Amaterasu,  and  plays 
all  kinds  of  pranks  on  her,  breaking  clown  the  divisions  of  her 
rice-fields,  generally  smashing  things  like  an  angry  child,  and 
finally  dropping  through  the  roof  of  her  dwelling  a  horse  that  he 
has  "  flayed  backward,"  whatever  that  means.  She  then  takes 
alarm  and  flies,  retiring  into  a  cave  and  leaving  all  the  outer  world 
to  darkness.  The  other  gods  then  consult  and  lure  her  out  by 
strategy,  thus  restoring  the  normal  condition  of  affairs,  but  they 


280  SAKURAMBO 

also  sit  in  judgment  on  Susa-no-Mikoto  and  expel  him  from  their 
midst,  this  time  without  any  divine  expulsion.  The  next  story 
also  relates  to  him.  He  comes  to  the  land  of  Izumo  and  here  he 
finds  an  old  man  and  woman  with  a  young  girl.  The  first  two  are 
in  tears  and  he  finds  out  that  the  girl  is  tribute  to  a  dragon  that 
dwells  in  the  country  and  yearly  comes  to  devour  his  prey.  "  It 
has  one  body  with  eight  heads  and  eight  tails.  Moreover,  on  its 
body  grows  moss,  and  also  hi-no-ki  and  cryptomerias.  Its  length 
extends  over  eight  valleys  and  eight  hills,"  and  generally  the  old 
chronicler  shows  little  skill  if  plenty  of  imagination  in  its  delinea- 
tion. Susa-no-Mikoto  asks  for  the  girl  as  his  reward,  bids  the 
old  man  prepare  eight  sake  (liquor)  tubs  and  leave  the  rest  to  him. 
Of  course  the  serpent  comes,  drinks  the  sake,,  and  is  subsequently 
slain  in  its  intoxicated  sleep  by  Susa-no-Mikoto.  This  is  quite  a 
favourite  story  of  Japanese  children  and  figures  in  all  the 
collections  of  folklore  tales. 

Other  stories  follow  without  much  forward  action  until  the 
Heaven-Shining-Great-August-Deity,  already  allowed  something 
of  a  primacy  among  the  gods,  decides  to  people  the  earth.  There 
is  as  much  backing  and  filling  over  who  shall  undertake  this  as 
subsequently  there  was,  at  times,  as  to  who  should  succeed  to  the 
imperial  throne  which  often  went  begging.  The  candidate 
finally  pitched  on  rejoiced  in  the  name  of  His  Augustness  Heaven- 
Plenty  -  Earth  -  Plenty  -  Heavens  -  Sun -Height -Prince -Rice -Ear- 
Ruddy-Plenty,  and  who  finally  descends  into  Himuka  (modern 
Hiuga)  in  Kyushu,  the  large  southern  island.  The  only  thing 
to  be  noted  here  is  the  locality  selected  by  tradition  for  this  early 
settlement.  It  is  singularly  consistent  through  all  its  forms,  a 
point  of  some  interest  seeing  that  it  is  this  island  that  directly  faces 
the  Asiatic  continent  at  its  nearest  point,  Korea.  Some  method 
must  be  found  to  account  for  the  mortality  of  the  imperial  line,  and 
this  is  found  in  the  action  of  Prince  Rice- Ears-Ruddy- Plenty  who 
insults  the  Deity  Great-Mountain-Possessor  by  accepting  his  beau- 
tiful younger  daughter  the  Princess-Blossoming-Brilliantly-Like- 
the-Flowers-of-the-Trees,  but  sending  back  the  elder  daughter 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  281 

Princess  Long-as-the-Rocks,  who  seemed  to  correspond  to  her 
name.  For  this  the  Deity  Great-Mountain-Possessor  curses  the 
August  offspring  and  "  it  is  for  this  reason  that  down  to  the 
present  day  the  august  lives  of  Their  Augustnesses  the  Heavenly 
Sovereigns  are  not  long." 

We  are  now  getting  close  down  to  things  more  mundane. 
Two  of  the  children  of  Prince  Rice-Ears-Ruddy-Plenty  were 
Prince  Fire-Shine,  who  was  a  fisherman,  and  Prince  Fire-Subside, 
who  was  a  hunter.  A  sort  of  Jacob  and  Esau  story  follows. 
Fire-Subside  asks  for  the  loan  of  his  brother's  fishing  tackle  and 
loses  the  most  essential  part  of  it,  the  hook.  Fire-Shine  refuses 
all  composition,  and  as  Fire-Subside,  instead  of  "  seeing  him 
furder  fust,"  sits  by  the  sea  weeping,  one  of  the  sea  divinities 
recommends  him  to  take  the  advice  of  the  Deity  Ocean- Possessor. 
He  builds  a  boat  and  after  some  adventures  with  the  Deity's 
daughter  is  finally  brought  into  his  presence.  He  marries  the 
daughter,  but  his  wife  sees  his  unhappiness  and  worms  out  of  him 
the  tale  of  the  fish-hook.  When  the  Deity  Ocean-Possessor  hears 
the  tale  he  summons  the  fish  so  as  to  locate  the  lost  hook  which  is 
finally  found  in  the  throat  of  the  Tai.  With  this  and  the  Deity's 
blessing  and  advice  how  to  overcome  his  brother,  he  (and  pre- 
sumably his  wife,  for  she  figures  later  with  him)  is  sent  back  to  the 
land  of  mortals,  riding  on  a  crocodile  who  is  specifically  warned 
not  to  buck.  The  worthy  pair  of  brothers  are  quickly  engaged  in 
a  battle  of  wits  in  which,  owing  to  the  charm  given  him  by  the 
Deity  Ocean-Possessor,  Fire-Subside  is  easily  victor.  Whenever 
his  brother  attacks  him  he  puts  forth  the  "  Tide  flowing  Jewel  " 
and  nearly  drowns  him,  until  he  is  ready  to  cry  enough  and  con- 
sent to  serve  his  younger  brother.  A  note  to  the  Kojiki  here  tells 
us  how  the  Hayabito,  imperial  guardsmen,  down  to  historical  times 
combined  the  office  of  court  jesters  with  that  of  guardsmen,  fulfill- 
ing in  their  dances  and  posturing  the  statement  of  the  Kojiki  that 
"  down  to  the  present  day  his  (Prince  Fire-Shine)  various  postur- 
ings  when  drowning  are  ceaselessly  served  up."  It  is  the  grand- 
son of  Prince  Fire-Subside  who  is  Prince  Kamu-Yamato-ihare- 


282  SAKURAMBO 

biko-no-Mikoto,  better  known  to  western  ears  under  his  posthu- 
mous name  of  Jimmu. 

Now  it  is  plain  enough  that  there  is  not  much  of  value  in  an 
historical  sense  to  be  wrung  out  of  this  part  of  the  Kojiki.  Future 
investigation  may  weave  some  sort  of  solar  myth  out  of  the 
Heaven-Shining-August-Deity  and  her  difficulties  with  her  brother, 
may  connect  it  with  an  eclipse  or  other  natural  phenomena;  and 
so  with  the  tale  of  the  eight-headed  serpent,  and  the  White  Hare 
of  Inaba;  and  the  story  of  the  Nether  Distant  Land  may  be  con- 
nected with  the  primitive  dwellers  of  the  real  land.  As  for  the 
contents  of  the  tales  and  their  expression,  they  will  hardly  bear 
serious  comparison  with  the  beautiful  myths  of  the  Iliad  and 
Odyssey.  They  are  decidedly  crude  and  at  times  grossly  obscene 
with  the  witless  obscenity  of  the  clown,  and  at  such  places  not 
veiled  in  the  harmonious  rhythm  of  Homer's  verse.  With  Jimmu 
Tenno,  however,  we  are,  to  the  average  educated  Japanese,  on 
solid  ground.  The  date,  667  B.  C,  given  to  his  accession,  is  an 
entirely  untrustworthy  one  from  any  point  of  view,  for  by  simply 
averaging  up  the  lives  of  the  intervening  emperors  the  tale  of  years 
allowed  to  each  is  as  unreasonable  as  that  allowed  to  the  old 
Hebrew  patriarchs.  When  material  was  found  carrying  back 
the  kings  of  Accad  to  5000  B.  C.  it  was  seen  at  once  that  the  scanty 
list  here  pointed  to  missing  links  in  the  chain,  and  true  enough  in 
time  most  of  those  links  have  been  discovered  and  filled  in  with 
data  and  with  kings  whose  lives  are  commensurate  with  human 
experience.  There  is  no  such  material  here  or  likelihood  of  find- 
ing it,  for  before  their  first  shadowy  appearance  in  history  in  the 
early  centuries  of  the  Christian  era  we  have  no  reason  to  believe 
that  the  Japanese  were  in  any  more  advanced  condition  than  the 
Britons  which  Caesar,  at  a  still  earlier  date,  found  in  Albion.  It 
must  be  remembered  that  the  tale  of  these  days  was  written  hun- 
dreds of  years  later,  when  the  writer  was  consciously  or  uncon- 
sciously drawing  on  his  own  experience,  and  transferring  much  of 
his  surroundings  to  his  paper.  Before  going  on  with  the  Kojiki, 
mention  should  be  made  of  one  of  the  early  Chinese  references 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  283 

given  in  Klaproth's  "  Introduction,"  bearing  in  mind  that  the 
date,  667  B.  C.  given  to  Jimmu's  emigration,  is  just  about  as 
trustworthy.  Klaproth  gives  this  Chinese  tale  with  the  frank 
statement  that  no  trust  is  to  be  placed  in  it.  It  refers  to  two 
brothers  who,  leaving  the  throne  of  their  father  to  a  younger 
brother,  emigrated  about  1280  B.  C.  to  found  a  kingdom  among 
the  barbarous  people  dwelling  in  the  north  of  China.  This  lasted 
for  six  centuries  and  a  half,  when  it  was  absorbed  by  conquest  by 
its  neighbours.  The  last  of  the  dynasty,  FucJia,  committed  suicide, 
and  his  son  and  grandsons  took  to  the  sea,  becoming  the  Wo  or 
Japanese.  Chinese  tradition  fixes  this  at  473  B.  C. 

\\Q  might  make  a  stop  here  to  make  a  legitimate  comparison 
with  the  chronologies  of  the  western  world,  simply  to  see  how  the 
Japanese  stand  in  this  Age  of  the  Gods  in  the  claim  to  be  an 
ancient  nation.  With  the  ancient  nations  of  western  Asia  and  the 
eastern  Mediterranean  they  and  the  Aryan  nations  of  Europe  have 
no  standing  at  all.  Japan  was  as  little  thought  of  as  the  United 
States  or  the  German  Empire  in  the  days  preceding  the  time  of  the 
Accadian  Empire,  5000  B.  C.  It  is  to  be  remembered  that  from 
4000  B.  C.  down  we  have  very  solid  historical  records  both  in 
Egypt  an(l  tne  Valley  of  the  Euphrates.  The  fourth  dynasty  was 
building  the  pyramids  in  Egypt,  the  Book  of  the  Dead  had  been 
formulated,  and  a  great  Semitic  empire  founded  in  Babylonia 
In  the  period  that  follows,  Babylonians,  Assyrians,  Egyptians, 
Phoenicians,  and  the  Hittite-Elamite  tribes,  were  carrying  on  that 
ferment  of  civilization  out  of  which  two  great  nations,  Assyria 
and  Egypt,  were  rising  and  making  their  struggle  for  supremacy. 
Small  indeed  seems  the  time  from  the  legendary  date  of  Jimmu  to 
the  present  day  when  we  add  a  thousand  years  to  it  and  come 
down  to  the  year  1500  B.  C.  Egypt  has  expelled  her  shepherd- 
kings,  Thothmes  III.  has  conquered  all  the  world  known  to  him 
and  has  made  Thebes,  Memphis,  and  Heliopolis  a  marvellous  sight 
of  temples,  palaces,  and  gardens,  to  which  we  crowd  to-day  to 
gape  and  wonder  at  the  ruins.  The  Hebrews  are  still  in  captivity 
in  Egypt  and  perhaps  groaned  as  they  toiled  over  these  massive 


284  SAKURAMBO 

piles.  A  hundred  years  later  western  Europe  comes  in  view. 
The  Etruscans  are  founding  their  kingdom  in  northern  Italy  and 
the  Dorian  Greeks  are  beginning  to  pour  over  that  ancient  Euro- 
pean civilization  at  Mycenae  and  in  Crete  which  the  latest  investi- 
gation is  carrying  back  to  an  age  rivalling  that  of  Egypt.  A  civil- 
ization showing  that  eastern  Europe  in  3500  B.  C.  was  a  worthy 
rival  of  Egypt  and  Assyria.  Two  hundred  years  later  in  1250 
B.  C.  began  authentic  Jewish  history  in  the  exodus  from  Egypt, 
and  as  to  the  reason  of  which  Egyptian  and  Jewish  authorities 
differ  so  radically  that  we  cannot  hope  to  reconcile  them.  Western 
Greece  and  Asiatic  Greece  had  come  to  grips  and  were  fighting  the 
wars  of  Troy ;  and  Hiram  I.  is  reigning  in  Tyre  and  foreshadow- 
ing that  commercial  people  who  were  to  give  Rome  herself  such 
a  tussle.  In  970  B.  C.  Solomon  is  seated  on  the  Jewish  throne 
and  the  kingdom  of  the  Jews  has  started  on  its  career.  A  hun- 
dred years  before  even  Jimmu's  shadowy  date — viz. :  776  B.  C.— 
the  Olympiads  have  been  established  in  Greece.  Centuries  before 
the  adventures  of  Achilles  have  become  part  of  the  folklore  of 
Greece  and  now  the  Iliad  of  "  Homer  of  Chios  "  has  been  familiar 
to  Greek  ears  for  nearly  a  hundred  years.  At  Jimmu's  date  both 
Greece  and  Rome  have  well  started  on  their  careers,  not  in  the 
land  of  myth  and  fable,  not  as  a  half  savage  wandering  clan,  but 
as  great  peoples  with  an  architecture  and  a  literature  soon  to  be 
developed  to  an  extent  never  known  in  the  far  eastern  world. 
We  certainly  cannot  enter  the  Japanese  among  those  nations  with 
a  really  ancient  history,  of  which  in  the  western  world  the  Egyp- 
tian fellah  and  the  Jew  are  still  the  unchanging  element.  Italian 
and  Greek,  still  clinging  tenaciously  to  their  original  soil  and 
against  the  waves  of  barbarian  hordes  of  the  North,  are  old — 
very  old — compared  to  the  Japanese,  although  they  are  young 
compared  to  Hebrew  or  Fellah.  We  will  have  to  come  much 
further  down  in  our  table  of  comparative  chronology  before  the 
Japanese  appear  in  it. 

If  we  cannot  get  much  history  we  can  get  a  good  deal  of  inter- 
esting reading  out  of  the  "  Japanese  Romulus."     The  legends  take 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  285 

on  a  much  more  human  tint.  There  is  even  less  of  the  marvellous 
in  them  than  is  found  in  the  accounts  of  some  of  the  later 
monarchs.  It  would  be  interesting  to  know  what  pressure  of 
time  or  circumstance  started  Jimmu  and  his  brother  on  their 
expedition  from  their  old  home  in  Hiuga.  Perhaps  his  fishermen, 
seeking  their  prey  in  more  remote  waters  or  blown  by  tempests  to 
Yamato,  brought  back  a  pleasing  tale  of  the  land  to  the  eastward. 
The  emigration  and  the  conquest  is  made  with  all  the  decent  regard 
for  time  that  such  movements  require.  We  do  not  find  Jimmu 
and  his  brother  at  once  transferred  to  Yamato,  which  leads  us  to 
believe  the  writer  of  the  Kojiki  is  using  some  old  folktale  worked 
up  by  years  of  oral  tradition  into  more  connected  form,  not  piecing 
them  together  himself.  They  stop  for  some  time  near  the  Shimo- 
noseki  straits  and  then  settle  on  the  Inland  Sea  in  what  is  now 
the  province  of  Aki.  Perhaps  Jimmu  more  than  once  sailed  from 
the  harbour  of  Kure,  now  the  great  Japanese  naval  port  of  the 
Inland  Sea.  The  tide  of  invasion  is  always  rolling  on,  and  for 
three  years  he  is  occupied  in  subduing  the  three  provinces  to  the 
eastward — Bingo,  Bitchu,  and  Bizen,  "  the  land  of  Kibi.''  His 
last  move  is  decisive,  and  he  next  appears  in  the  promised  land  of 
Yamato  ready  to  face  the  struggle  which  is  in  front  of  him.-  This 
is  no  light  one.  The  Prince  of  the  land,  Tomi,  offers  a  stout  resist- 
ance to  the  invaders.  Jimmu's  brother  is  slain  in  battle  and  Jimmu 
himself  plainly  received  a  check,  for  he  substitutes  attacks  on  the 
flanks  of  Tomi's  country  rather  than  direct  invasion.  In  fact, 
he  gets  in  a  pretty  bad  way,  and  is  only  extricated  by  the  aid  of 
his  divine  ancestor,  who  sends  him  assistance  in  the  shape  of  a 
wonderful  sword.  All  Jimmu's  army,  himself  'included,  have 
been  prostrated,  "  fainted  away,"  but  when  Jimmu  receives  this 
weapon  and  displays  it  to  the  sight  of  the  enemy,  they  are  cut 
to  pieces  merely  by  its  divine  power.  Organized  opposition  is 
decidedly  lessened  against  a  man  with  such  powerful  influence  be- 
hind him.  Prince  Tomi,  however,  is  still  heard  of  as  recalcitrant. 
There  is  of  course  a  good  deal  of  the  marvellous  mixed  with 
much  of  the  human  element,  but  there  is  a  very  natural  touch  of 


286  SAKURAMBO 

the  latter.  Treachery  and  cunning  are  displayed  together  with 
hard  fighting  and  rash  bravery.  We  seem  to  be  reading  of  a 
condition  of  civilization  much  like  that  we  read  of  in  the  German 
folklore  tales  of  Siegfried,  and  Hagen,  and  Gunther;  only  the 
old  German  stories  are  much  more  elaborately  and  beautifully 
worked  up,  and  there  is  a  real  ethical  teaching  behind  their  tales  of 
blood  and  warfare.  Two  of  these  stories  of  Jimmu  are  worth 
giving  in  some  detail.  He  sends  a  messenger  to  two  brothers 
named  Akeshi  who  were  evidently  in  arms  against  his  power. 
The  nature  of  the  messenger — a  crow,  eight  feet  long — we  can 
pass  over,  later  on  in  the  chronicle  it  would  have  been  a  man  with 
a  name  eight  feet  long.  Unable  to  resist  by  force,  one  of  the 
brothers  decides  to  use  treachery,  so  he  invites  Jimmu  to  come 
to  him,  and  meanwhile  prepares  a  pitfall  in  the  "  palace  "  to  snare 
the  king.  The  younger  brother,  however,  turns  traitor  and  warns 
Jimmu,  who  pays  the  visit  by  deputy.  These  insist  on  the  elder 
Akeshi  entering  the  palace  first  and  drive  him  into  it  at  the  point 
of  their  spears.  He  falls  into  his  own  trap,  and  in  that  strenuous 
age  promptly  pays  for  his  treachery  with  his  life.  The  second 
episode  has  the  natural  feature  of  primitive  warfare.  The  land 
seems  to  have  been  in  part  occupied  by  cave  dwellers,  "  earth 
spiders  "  the  Kojiki  calls  them,  who  lived  a  particularly  outlaw 
existence  unconnected  with  even  the  primitive  government  of  the 
aborigines.  Jimmu  goes  against  them  as  against  brigands;  but 
he  encompasses  them  by  treachery,  inviting  them  all  to  a  feast 
and  stationing  his  warriors  disguised  as  servants  behind  them. 
At  a  signal  they  are  cut  down  in  the  midst  of  their  rejoicing.  The 
latter  part  of  his  reign  is  far  better  established.  He  is  imagined 
to  have  left  Hiuga  in  667  B.  C.  and  seven  years  later  he  builds 
his  palace  in  Yamato  and  is  crowned  Emperor  or  Dairi.*  An 
elaborate  establishment  of  guards  and  ministers  is  attributed  to  the 
end  of  his  reign,  all  of  which  can  be  transferred  to  the  preconceived 
ideas  of  writers  influenced  by  the  customs  of  their  own  times. 

*  "As  long  as  the  Emperor  is  living  it  is  not  allowed  to  use  his  name  in 
speaking  of  him.    He  is  mentioned  under  that  of  his  palace— Dairi  "—Klaproth. 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  287 

These  old  stories  of  Jimmu  have  a  very  real  value.  We  see  the 
Emperor  appearing  in  the  role  of  a  petty  Mongol  chief,  leading 
in  person  his  troops  to  battle  and  governing  his  people  directly. 
Everything  is  on  a  very  small  scale.  There  is  here  no  evidence 
of  a  great  movement  by  a  great  people  and  it  can  safely  be  assumed 
that  Jimmu's  invasion  is  purely  that  of  a  local  tribe,  not  of  some 
great  wave  of  continental  immigration.  And  as  the  movement  is 
petty,  so  also  are  the  means  often  petty.  Jimmu  and  his  men  in 
Yamato  are  much  like  one  of  the  bands  of  Northmen  who  effected 
settlements  in  southern  Europe  and  gradually  made  themselves  part 
of  the  land.  It  would  be  interesting  to  know  whether  these  earliest 
invaders  had  any  recruiting  from  their  home  province  of  Hiuga. 
Probably  yes,  for  the  movement  is  slow  and  continuous,  and  Jimmu 
has  to  deal  not  only  with  the  aborigines  but  with  the  chiefs  refrac- 
tory to  the  primacy  which  he  has  assumed. 

If  we  have  a  decided  strain  of  the  human  element  in  Jimmu's 
story  we  have  still  more  of  it  in  that  of  his  immediate  successors. 
Jimmu  had  several  wives,  and  for  two  years  his  throne  was  in  dis- 
pute between  his  sons  by  different  mothers.  One  pretendant  to 
the  throne  was  finally  slain  and  Suizei  ascends  the  throne  in  581 
B.  C.  These  dates  and  the  facts  themselves,  it  should  be  added, 
are  about  as  reliable  as  if  we  should  attempt  to  give  dates  and  credit 
to  the  wanderings  of  Ulysses,  but  they  serve  the  useful  role  of  intro- 
ducing some  sort  of  chronology  into  this  period  of  legends  and 
folklore.  There  is  little  to  note  as  to  this  second  emperor  except 
the  fact  that  he  was  a  younger  son  of  Jimmu  and  was  chosen 
by  his  elder  brothers  to  succeed,  a  precedent  often  followed  in  later 
days.  The  old  chronicle  skips  a  few  centuries  here,  bridging  the 
interval  with  pages  of  genealogy.  The  next  emperor  in  whose 
reign  anything  of  importance  happens  is  Korei  (290-210  B.  C.), 
for  he  must  have  witnessed  the  elevation  of  Fuji  and  formation  of 
Biwa  Lake  to  which  we  have  referred.  Klaproth  also  speaks  of  an 
old  Chinese  tradition  in  which  the  Emperor  of  China  sends  his 
physician  to  find  the  Elixir  of  Life.  He  lands  on  the  islands  of  the 
East,  possibly  Japan.  This  is  about  as  shadowy  as  the  next  two 


288  SAKURAMBO 

Japanese  emperors  who  account  for  the  whole  period  between  209 
and  97  B.  C.  Both  reigns  cover  a  period  of  sixty  years  each  and 
the  emperors  live  to  the  advanced  age  of  a  hundred  and  fifteen 
and  a  hundred  and  seventeen  years  respectively.  As  far  as  any 
record  is  concerned  we  can  well  believe  there  is  a  lapse  in  it  here. 

As  we  get  down  to  the  Christian  Era  the  details  multiply.  In 
the  reign  of  Sujin,  the  tenth  emperor  (9.7-30  B.  C.),  the  bar- 
barians to  the  north  were  troubling  and  being  troubled,  and  the 
Emperor  despatched  an  army  against  them,  concerning  which  it 
is  worth  noting  that  the  emperors  have  already  begun  to  seek 
substitutes  in  their  warlike  role.  Hardly  is  the  army  on  its  way 
than  he  has  to  call  it  back  to  suppress  rebellion  at  home.  His 
reign  is  more  noteworthy,  however,  for  the  tradition  of  an  embassy 
from  Korea  at  which  we  can  look  with  some  suspicion,  for  the  old 
writers  were  naturally  eager  to  push  back  the  period  of  contact 
with  the  old  world  just  as  they  were  nervously  eager  to  make 
the  date  of  the  civilization  of  their  own  land  as  distant  as  possible. 
We  note  here  a  custom  in  which  the  Japanese  are  akin  to  their 
Tartar  neighbours  on  the  continent.  It  was  usual  up  to  the 
reign  of  Sujin  to  bury  a  number  of  retainers  with  a  deceased  chief. 
They  were  literally  "  planted  "  up  to  their  necks  in  the  ground  and 
left  to  starve  or  have  their  eyes  picked  out  by  the  birds,  a  process 
which  anyone  who  has  examined  the  sharp  curved  beak  of  one  of 
our  ordinary  crows  can  well  appreciate.  In  the  Nihongi — a  com- 
panion chronicle  to  the  Kojiki—is  a  description  of  the  funeral 
ceremonies  attending  the  death  of  Suinin's  brother,  Yamato-hiko- 
no-Mikoto.  Following  Mr.  Satow's  translation,  "  On  this  they 
assembled  those  who  had  been  in  his  immediate  service,  and  buried 
them  all  upright  round  his  sepulchre  alive.  For  many  days  they 
died  not,  but  day  and  night  wept  and  cried.  At  last  they  died  and 
rotted.  Dogs  and  crows  assembled  and  ate  them.  The  Mikado, 
hearing  the  sound  of  their  weeping  and  crying,  felt  saddened  and 
pained  in  his  heart."  Suinin  could  not  sleep,  and  he  offered  a 
reward  to  anyone  who  would  devise  a  substitute.  This  was  done 
by  substituting  for  the  living  men  and  animals  clay  figures,  and 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  289 

the  lucky  genius  who  devised  this  outlet  from  the  difficulty  was 
loaded  with  honours.  Probably  his  wit  was  stimulated  by  the 
desire  to  avoid  a  like  fate.  The  practice  seems  to  have  been 
occasionally  enforced  much  later. 

Su jin's  successor  Suinin  (29  B.  €.-70  A.  D.)  was  something 
of  a  freak,  being  nearly  ten  feet  high.  This  did  not  spare  him 
fighting  for  his  throne,  and  that,  too,  against  domestic  treason. 
It  is  noticeable  all  through  this  political  period  of  the  emperors  that , 
their  persons  and  lives  were  the  object  of  attack.  The  divinity 
attributed  to  them  was  still  very  slenderly  hedged,  and  it  is  not  until 
they  retire  from  politics  much  later  in  history  that  their  sacred 
character  appears  fully  grounded.  Suinin's  brother-in-law  was 
the  head  and  centre  of  the  plot  against  him,  and  even  his  wife  was 
involved  in  it.  She  was  appointed  to  slay  him  as  he  slept,  but 
lacked  the  courage  and  the  Emperor  awakened  by  her  tears  falling 
on  his  face  quickly  learned  the  story  of  the  plot.  Even  then  he 
does  not  seem  to  have  been  in  a  position  to  take  immediate  action. 
The  Queen  takes  sides  with  her  brother — as  a  matter  of  family 
pride — and  they  perish  in  the  flames  of  the  castle  which  is  attacked 
in  force  by  the  Emperor  in  person ;  all  except  the  royal  infant 
\vhich  she  sends  out  to  her  spouse.  Castle,  it  can  be  added,  by  no 
means  implies  the  massive  stone  structure  of  later  days.  They 
were  built  of  wattles  and  earthworks,  and  in  this  particular  case 
bags  of  rice  were  used  as  defence.  It  was  not  until  the  sixteenth 
century  when  Nobunaga  built,  on  a  European  model  furnished  by 
the  Portuguese,  his  great  castle  of  Azuchi  on  Lake  Biwa  that  the 
massive  structures  exemplified  at  Nagoya  and  Himeji  were  erected. 
We  are  as  yet  far  beyond  the  beginning  of  any  written  records,  but 
we  have  attributed  to  this  Emperor  an  elaborate  political  and  re- 
ligious system  and  also  the  sending  of  an  embassy  to  China.  A 
very  specific  account  is  given  of  the  first  wrestling  bout  which  took 
place  before  him.  One  of  the  contestants  breaks  his  leg  and  dies, 
and  the  other  is  granted  a  small  property  and  becomes  known  as 
the  inventor  of  clay  figures  and  bijouterie.  As  in  Europe  this 
episode  shows  that  the  old  sports  were  rough  and  dangerous. 

19 


290  SAKURAMBO 

His  successor  Keiko  (71-130  A.  D.),  a  much  married  man 
and  father  of  eighty  children,  is  far  more  renowned  for  one  of  his 
sons  than  for  the  events  of  his  reign.  Yamato-take  is  the  Jap- 
anese Hercules,  and  just  when  we  are  getting  down  so  nicely  into 
more  mundane  surroundings  this  young  man  sends  us  packing  off 
again  into  the  land  of  legend.  I  say  Hercules,  for  the  rough  and 
ready  traits  of  that  hero  largely  enter  into  Yamato-take's  exploits ; 
but  there  is  also  something  of  the  gentler  Hiawatha  in  his  composi- 
tion as  shown  by  his  later  adventures,  and  perhaps  some  Japanese 
Longfellow  will  rise  to  tell  his  story  in  similar  strains  accentuating 
more  that  side  of  his  character.  His  first  exploit  is  decidedly 
strenuous,  for  he  pulls  his  brother  apart,  limb  from  limb,  for  dis- 
obeying their  father.  Glad  to  get  rid  of  such  a  boisterous  son, 
Keiko  sends  him  to  subdue  two  bandit  chiefs.  He  is  only  sixteen, 
and  taking  advantage  of  his  youthful  appearance  disguises  himself 
as  a  woman  and  enters  the  camp  of  the  chiefs.  These  are  com- 
pletely deceived  and  make  much  of  him,  feteing  and  entertaining 
him.  When  he  has  them  thoroughly  off  their  guard,  he  draws 
a  sword  he  has  concealed  under  his  garments  and  plunges  it  into 
the  breast  of  his  host  seated  next  to  him.  The  other  brother  is 
cut  down  in  his  flight,  only  living  long  enough  to  give  to  his  slayer 
the  name  by  which  he  is  known  afterward,  "  Bravest  in  Yamato." 
"  As  he  had  finished  saying  this,  the  Prince  ripped  him  up  like  a 
ripe  melon  and  slew  him."  Treachery  at  this  date  seems  the 
favorite  method  with  Yamato-take.  Western  readers  can  hardly 
read  with  unction  his  adventure  with  the  Izumo  bravo.  Yamato- 
take  first  wins  his  friendship  and  then  slays  him  by  a  trick  far 
more  disastrous  to  the  enemy  than  the  exchange  of  armour  be- 
tween Glaucus  and  Diomedes.  Yamato-take  has  slipped  a  wooden 
blade  into  his  scabbard,  and  jesting  proposes  that  each  take  the 
weapon  of  the  other.  Then  he  draws  the  genuine  blade  and  falls 
on  his  helpless  foe,  rejoicing, 

"  Alas  that  the  sword  girded  on  the  Izumo 
"  bravo,  and  wound  round  with  many  a 
"  creeper,  should  have  no  true  blade/' 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  291 

Much  better  reading  are  his  adventures  against  the  northern 
barbarians.  His  aunt,  the  Priestess  of  Ize,  has  given  him  a  magic 
sword — "  the  Herb-Quelling  Sword  " — and  he  purges  the  northern 
quarter  of  the  kingdom,  the  Kwanto,  of  these  pests,  although  many 
a  trap  do  they  lay  for  him.  But  his  neglect  of  the  gods — like 
many  strong  men,  he  is  confident  in  his  strength — causes  the  loss 
of  his  wife,  who  sacrifices  herself  to  the  sea  to  calm  the  storm 
raised  by  hostile  divinities,  and  to  enable  her  husband  to  carry  out 
his  mission  in  Awa.  His  next  matrimonial  venture  is  not  for- 
tunate, for  he  gives  his  magic  sword  to  his  new  wife,  and  bitterly 
he  laments  its  absence  as  he  pursues  the  Deity  of  Mount  Ibuki. 
This  adversary  is  far  too  heavy  for  him  in  his  defenceless  condition 
and  causes  a  "  heavy  ice  rain  "  to  fall  on  Yamato-take  as  he  climbs 
the  mountain.  The  hero  soon  feels  the  effect  of  such  a  battering, 
and  in  plain  terms  sickens  and  dies  of  pneumonia,  w7hich  is  at  least 
one  palpable  and  prosaic  fact  to  get  out  of  the  heroic  age  and  the 
Kojiki.  We  do  not  require  much  comparative  chronology  in  this 
period, — we  have  run  over  from  Jimmu  to  Keiko  (660  B.  C.-I3O 
A.D. ) .  It  has  been  a  stirring  period  in  Europe.  Greece  has  waxed 
and  waned,  after  leaving  the  world  a  heritage  that  will  probably 
never  be  equalled.  The  Roman  Empire  is  ready  to  enter  on  its  de- 
cline after  being  mistress  of  the  world  for  the  two  hundred  and  fifty 
years  from  the  fall  of  Carthage.  Roman  Britain  is  a  flourishing 
colony.  France  and  Spain  are  great  Roman  colonies,  foundation 
already  being  laid  for  two  great  modern  nations.  It  is  only 
beyond  the  Rhine  and  in  the  forests  of  Sarmatia  that  the  cloud  of 
barbarians  hangs  threatening  to  overwhelm  European  civilization 
before  that  civilization  tames  its  conquerors.  Fortunate  were 
the  Japanese  in  having  the  scanty  Ebisn  instead  of  hordes  of  Goths 
and  Vandals,  Visigoths  and  Huns  to  meet  in  battle.  What  civil- 
ization they  had  to  develop  could  only  be  hampered  in  such  develop- 
ment by  domestic  discord,  and  not  be  in  constant  danger  of  attack 
from  powerful  outside  foes. 

More  than  half  a  century  after  Keiko's  reign  comes  one  of 
those  critical  periods  in  a  nation's  career.     That  is  if  we  can  place 


292  SAKURAMBO 

any  confidence  in  the  national  tradition.  We  need  not  accept  the 
dates  that  the  old  chronicle  offers  here,  but  there  is  evidence  in 
the  contents  of  the  numerous  dolmens  scattered  over  this  old  land 
of  Yamato  to  show  that  the  Japanese  had  contact  with  their  conti- 
nental neighbours  at  a  period  earlier  than  the  introduction  of 
Chinese  learning.  Burial  in  the  dolmens,  to  be  sure,  was  prac- 
ticed as  late  as  700  A.  D.,  but  some  of  them  perhaps  can  be  attrib- 
uted to  a  period  as  early  as  200  A.  D.  Up  to  this  point  the  tradi- 
tions of  the  Japanese  themselves  show  a  people  who  have  advanced 
to  a  civilization  of  about  the  same  grade  as  that  the  Romans  found 
in  Britain  a  couple  of  hundred  years  earlier,  and  Boadicea  and  the 
Iceni  will  perhaps  give  as  good  a  picture  of  the  times  we  have  been 
describing  as  any  that  can  be  drawn  for  western  readers,  and 
then  we  hear  of  no  such  imposing  priesthood  as  the  Druids. 
But  the  contents  of  these  dolmens  contain  articles  of  Chinese 
and  Korean  workmanship,  and  it  is  to  this  time  that  the  old 
chronicles  attribute  the  first  invasion  of  Korea  and  contact  with 
their  outside  neighbours.  Chuai  (192-200  A.  D.)  from  all 
accounts  had  a  very  short  and  busy  reign.  He  was  mainly  en- 
gaged with  "  plague,  pestilence,  and  famine  "  and  wars  with  his 
barbarian  neighbours.  In  the  midst  of  his  troubles  he  is  ap- 
proached by  his  Empress  Jingo  Kogo*  who  "  possessed  "  by  the 
gods  tells  him  there  is  a  land  to  the  westward  flowing  in  milk  and 
honey,  and  bidding  him  go  conquer  it.  Chuai  probably  thought 
he  had  enough  trouble  on  hand  at  home.  At  all  events  he  paid 
but  small  attention  to  the  divine  commands.  There  is  something 
tragic  in  the  death  of  this  puzzled  man,  sitting  brooding  over 
the  confusion  in  his  kingdom  and  touching  the  strings  of  his  lute. 
This  is  how  the  Kojiki  tells  the  tale — "  '  There  is  only  the  great 


*  A  Japanese  writer  attributes  the  origin  of  the  English  expression  "  by 
jingo"  to  the  name  of  the  Japanese  Empress.  The  expression,  however,  is 
a  very  old  one  and  far  ante-dates  the  jingle  ending  with  "  we  don't  want  to 
fight,  but  by  jingo  if  we  do,  we've  got  the  ships,  we've  got  the  men,  and  we've 
got  the  money  too."  Certainly  old  Peter  Motteux  uses  the  expression  in  his 
translation  of  the  fourth  book  of  Rabelais,  which  dates  it  back  at  least  as 
tar  as  1694. 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  293 

sea  '  (to  the  westward,  he  said),  '  they  are  lying  Deities,'  and  he 
pushed  away  his  august  lute,  did  not  play  on  it,  and  sat  silent. 
Then  the  Deities  were  very  angry,  and  said :  '  Altogether  as  for 
this  empire,  it  is  not  a  land  over  which  thou  oughtest  to  rule.  Do 
thou  go  to  the  one  road ! '  Hereupon  the  Prime  Minister,  the 
Noble  Take-uchi,  said:  '[I  am  filled  with]  awe,  my  Heavenly 
Sovereign !  Continue  playing  thy  great  august  lute.'  Then  he 
slowly  drew  his  august  lute  to  him,  and  languidly  played  on  it. 
So  almost  immediately  the  sound  of  the  august  lute  became  inaudi- 
ble. On  their  forthwith  lifting  a  light  and  looking,  [the  Heavenly 
Sovereign]  was  dead.*' 

One  puzzling  feature  about  this  episode  is  the  locality  of  the 
story.  Without  warning  we  find  ourselves  translated  to  Kyushu 
and  the  centre  of  the  Government  is  no  longer  in  Yamato.  The 
Empress  Jingo  finds  herself  in  an  interesting  situation — in  a  double 
sense  of  the  term.  The  will  of  the  gods  must  be  carried  out  and  at 
the  same  time  some  means  must  be  found  to  prolong  her  advancing 
pregnancy.  This  she  succeeds  in  doing  and  so  delays  it  for  three 
years,  which  is  enough  to  stamp  her  as  a  very  wonderful  personage. 
The  judgment  of  the  old  Emperor  is  justified,  for  Jingo  finds  it 
necessary  to  quiet  affairs  at  home.  This  done  she  pushes  boldly 
forward  against  her  unprepared  antagonists  who  hasten  to  submit 
and  pay  tribute.  On  her  return  to  Japan,  and  after  attending  to 
her  more  personal  unfinished  business,  she  finds  it  necessary  with 
her  infant  son  Ojin  to  again  move  on  Yamato  where  advantage  has 
been  taken  of  her  absence.  Here  the  chiefs  have  established  them- 
selves on  their  own  account,  two  sons  of  Chuai  by  a  concubine  lead- 
ing the  revolt.  Jingo  succeeds  more  by  craft  than  blows  and  once 
more  establishes  herself,  as  regent,  on  the  throne.  A  very  inter- 
esting record  of  this  regency  is  the  first  embassy  to  China,  which 
Klaproth  tells  us  is  corroborated  by  the  Chinese  records.  These 
say  it  took  place  in  238  A.  D.  and  of  course  claimed  it  was  an 
embassy  bringing  tribute  to  the  son  of  heaven.  Japanese  his- 
torians of  the  advanced  school  reject  this  Korean  conquest  by 
Jingo.  There  is  no  evidence  of  such  an  event  having  taken  place 


294  SAKURAMBO 

and  it  cannot  be  identified  with  any  of  the  raids,  more  or  less 
serious,  of  which  the  Koreans  kept  an  account.  That  a  female  did 
rule  over  Japan  at  this  time  and  that  she  was  a  woman  of  no  little 
ability  is  corroborated  by  Chinese  records.  These  speak  of  her  as 
Ohime,  which  is  "  honourable  princess,"  not  a  name  itself.  They 
say  that  she  was  chosen  by  the  Japanese  to  compound  their  many 
differences  and  that  after  her  elevation  to  the  throne  she  lived 
in  retirement  and  was  never  seen ;  that  she  reigned  for  many  years 
and  was  succeeded  by  another  female.  It  is  the  shrines  of  Chuai, 
Jingo,  and  her  son  Ojin  that  we  have  just  passed  at  Usa  in  Kyushu. 

Ojin  (270-312  A.  D.)  had  a  long  reign.  We  hear  much  of 
forced  labour  in  his  times.  Public  works  built  by  Ainu  and 
Koreans.  Two  features  of  interest  are  referred  to  this  period. 
A  dispute  arises  involving  great  interests  and  (delicately  speaking) 
the  personal  equation  of  two  of  his  great  nobles.  Ojin  establishes 
the  trial  by  hot  water  to  determine  which  one  of  the  two  is  stretch- 
ing the  truth ;  as  logical  and  perhaps  a  more  useful  procedure  than 
egging  them  on  to  hammer  each  other  into  so  much  useless  pulp  on 
a  "  fenced  field."  More  doubtful  is  the  tale  of  the  introduction  of 
Chinese  books  through  Wani,  sent  from  Korea.  This  is  ante- 
dating a  story  of  two  hundred  years  later.  Sake,  or  rice  liquor, 
is  also  introduced  in  this  reign — from  Korea — and  Ojin  shares 
Noah's  fate  in  indulging  not  wisely  but  too  well.  He  is  canonized, 
however,  after  his  death  as  Hachiman,  the  god  of  war,  not  as 
Bacchus. 

During  the  long  reign  of  his  successor,  Nintoku  (313-399 
A.  D.),  much  is  heard  of  public  improvements.  Lakes  and 
channels  are  dredged  out  on  quite  a  large  scale.  The  life  of 
wandering  tribes  has  settled  down  into  that  of  a  people  established 
in  the  land.  The  barbarian  is  less  pressing  on  the  attention  of 
the  growing  power.  This  is  no  longer  centred  in  the  head  of  a 
warring  tribe.  The  emperor  as  yet  is  the  genuine  head  of  his 
people,  but  he  is  more  rex  than  dux.  Nintoku's  improvements 
weighed  heavily  on  his  people,  but  he  seemed  a  reasonable  sort  of 
man  and  one  who  could  enter  into  their  difficulties.  His  memory  is 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  295 

of  a  pleasant  savour  in  their  nostrils,  for,  rinding  out  their  distress, 
he  remitted  all  taxes  for  several  years,  not  even  allowing  his  own 
palace  to  be  kept  in  repair  by  their  forced  labour,  and  shifting  his 
quarters  pretty  often  in  consequence  of  leaks  in  the  roof.  His 
empress  was  most  determined  as  to  her  connubial  rights  and  much 
of  the  record  is  taken  up  with  Nintoku's  endeavours  to  make  peace 
after  his  numerous  infidelities.  His  successors  are  a  very  average 
lot  of  mortals.  The  refinement  of  its  neighbours  has  not  yet 
touched  the  land,  and  we  are  in  that  period  corresponding  to  our 
Anglo-Saxon  ancestors  when  they  wrere  still  living  under  their 
tents  uninfluenced  by  civilization  or  missionaries. 

Nintoku  was  succeeded  by  Richiu  (400-405  A.  D.).  .  His 
reign  begins  with  a  rebellion  against  him  headed  by  his  younger 
brother.  There  are  touches  in  references  to  these  times  that  recall 
an  old  Welsh  jingle,  or  rather  an  old  jingle  in  reference  to  the 
Welsh. 

"  Gryffyd  ap  Llewellynn  Plym, 
What  a  name  to  go  to  bed  with, 
Would  fill  himself  up  to  the  brim 
With  gin  and  rum  and  bitter  beer. 
Anything  to  swell  his  head  with. 
Gryffyd  ap  Llewellynn  Plym, 
Full  of  liquor  to  the  brim." 

The  manners  of  the  court  are  distinctly  gross,  and  the  emperor 
nearly  loses  his  life  in  a  fit  of  intoxication,  of  which  his  brother 
takes  advantage  to  head  an  attack  against  the  palace.  Richu's 
minister,  however,  loads  the  unconscious  monarch  on  his  back  and 
carries  him  off  to  safety,  leaving  the  palace  in  flames.  The  throne 
seems  no  bed  of  roses.  On  his  death  it  literally  goes  begging,  and 
it  is  only  by  persuasion  that  Inkyo  (412-453  A.  D.)  consents  to 
assume  the  imperial  power.  It  had  been  decided  that  of  his  two 
sons,  Prince  Karu  should  succeed  him.  This  prince,  however, 
roused  a  strong  party  against  him  by  his  dissolute  action  in  de- 
bauching his  young  sister.  Absorbed  in  this  guilty  passion  he  fell 
an  easy  victim  to  his  brother  and  was  banished  to  the  hot  springs 
of  lyo.  The  passion  seems  to  have  been  mutual,  for  the  lady  fol- 


296  SAKURAMBO 

lowed  him  thither,  and  probably  to  forestall  a  separation  they 
committed  suicide  together.  Many  of  these  scenes  read  much  like 
the  times  of  Murad  IV.  The  successful  brother  and  Emperor, 
Anko  (454-456  A.  D.),  slays  his  uncle  who  had  conspired  against 
him,  and  takes  his  aunt  for  wife.  As  her  child  by  her  former  hus- 
band plays  around,  Anko  tells  his  wife  of  his  misgivings  that  the 
child  when  he  grows  up  will  avenge  the  father.  Young  as  he  is 
the  child  understands  the  conversation  and  takes  time  and  his  rela- 
tive by  the  forelock.  As  soon  as  the  Emperor  is  asleep  he  seeks 
a  sword  and  then  chops  off  his  head. 

From  the  year  of  confusion  which  follows  the  Emperor's 
assassination,  the  boisterous  Prince  Oho-Hatsuse  (later  Yuriaku) 
emerges  triumphant,  and  avenges  his  father  the  Emperor.  All 
through  this  period  the  defeated  usually  commit  suicide  by  stab- 
bing or  hanging,  in  preference  to  falling  into  the  hands  of  their 
enemies  who  treated  them  in  genuine  Tartar  fashion.  Not  all 
could  be  so  skillful,  however,  as  old  Tsurube,  guardian  of  the  child 
prince  murderer,  who  cuts  off  his  own  head!  We  could  believe 
this,  perchance,  an  exaggeration,  were  it  not  for  the  fact  that  cen- 
turies later,  in  the  reign  of  Go-Daigo,  we  find  that  the  general  Nitta 
when  defeated  by  Ashikaga  Takauji  accomplishes  the  same  feat. 
Yuriaku  (455-477  A.  D.)  had  the  unenviable  reputation  of  being 
known  as  the  bad  emperor.  He  loved  blood  and  sport  and  often 
mixed  the  two,  treacherously  murdering  his  cousin  Prince  Ichinobe 
while  riding  peacefully  beside  him  to  the  chase.  It  can  be  imagined 
that  the  manners  of  his  court  were  no  improvement  over  the  times 
of  his  predecessors.  Even  the  ladies  took  a  hand  at  lowering  the 
peg  and  the  sake  circulated  freely.  His  son  died  without  issue  in 
487  A.  D.  and  the  direct  line  came  to  an  end.  During  the  inter- 
regnum a  lineal  heir  was  almost  despaired  of,  until  accidentally  in 
the  person  of  two  peasants  were  identified  the  lost  children  of 
Prince  Ichinobe,  slain  by  Yuriaku  twenty-six  years  before.  These 
had  fled  on  the  murder  of  their  father  and  disguised  themselves 
as  clowns.  The  Regent  of  the  kingdom  on  one  of  his  excursions 
comes  into  their  neighbourhood,  and  the  people  are  summoned  to 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  297 

dance  before  him.  During  the  dance  the  younger  of  the  brothers 
recites  their  adventures  in  a  song,  and  to  his  great  delight  the 
Regent  is  able  to  find  candidates  for  the  vacant  throne.  The 
material  is  inimitable  for  a  comic  opera.  The  younger  Genso 
reigns  from  485  to  487,  during  which  it  is  necessary  to  have  a 
remission  of  taxes.  Muretsu,  his  son,  is  another  bad  emperor. 
The  details  of  his  amusements  cannot  be  given  here.  Enough  to 
say  that  he  is  a  thorough  degenerate  whose  match  can  only  be 
found  in  an  emperor  like  Caligula.  It  is  but  a  short  step,  in  which 
no  events  of  great  importance  happened,  to  the  Emperor  Kimmei 
(540  A.  D.).  With  his  reign  and  the  introduction  of  Buddhism 
we  have  taken  up  elsewhere  the  modern  history  of  Japan. 

We  have  at  least  the  satisfaction  in  this  period  dating  from 
Ojin  of  feeling  that  we  have  gotten  beyond  the  period  of  mere 
tradition.  There  is  proof  that  the  Japanese  had  come  in  contact 
with  the  more  advanced  civilization  of  their  continental  neighbours. 
We  can  hardly  rely  on  the  statement  that  the  Chinese  books  were 
brought  over  in  the  time  of  Ojin.  Professor  Chamberlain  has 
pointed  out  that  one  of  these  books  was  not.  published  until  two 
hundred  years  later,  and  under  the  circumstances  we  must  attribute 
something  to  the  zeal  of  subsequent  compilers — one  of  those 
"  rousing  whids  "  to  which  Burns  refers.  Fortunately  or  unfor- 
tunately the  peculiar  situation  of  the  Japanese  has  enabled  the  iso- 
lated development  of  a  race  on  lines  entirely  subject  to  its  own 
control.  Their  neighbours  were  both  un warlike — for  example, 
the  Korean;  and  unenterprising — for  example,  the  Chinese.  If 
China  had  been  a  great  warrior  nation  such  as  ancient  Rome,  the 
history  of  the  East  would  have  had  a  very  different  development. 
But  in  addition,  there  was  none  of  that  ferment  of  nations  which 
in  Europe  prevented  the  Roman  Empire  from  going  into  that 
deathlike  trance  which  up  to  recent  times  has  held  the  Pacific 
coast  of  Asia.  Xone  of  those  virile  peoples  which  swarmed  from 
the  northern  forests  of  Germany  and  Scandinavia,  eager  to  destroy 
and  eager  to  learn,  absorbing  the  civilization  of  the  conquered, 
and  with  that  active  originality  of  mind  which  enabled  them  to 


298  SAKURAMBO 

make  such  civilization  the  basis  of  their  own  onward  development. 
The  Japanese,  on  the  contrary,  were  left  to  develop  on  their  own 
island  kingdom.  They  are  not  an  original  people.  They  are  a 
people  who  have  invented  little  and  adopted  much ;  and  what  they 
have  adopted  has  been  chosen  out  by  themselves  as  fitted  to  their 
peculiar  ideas.  They  have  had  nothing  forced  upon  them,  a 
process  which,  however,  is  very  wholesome  to  a  nation's  life.  The 
result  is  that  they  have  not  so  much  taken  the  best  of  every  nation 
as  they  have  taken  the  outward  form  of  the  best,  and  that  is  a  very 
different  thing  from  the  inward  spirit.  However,  in  this  fifth 
century  we  have  got  them  beyond  the  days  of  Boadicea  and  her 
Iceni.  Life  is  still  primitive.  One  suggestive  touch  is  found  in 
an  incident  connected  with  the  fiery  Yuriaku.  A?  this  prince  was 
hunting,  his  eye  caught  the  recently  erected  mansion  of  one  of  his 
nobles  who  indiscreetly  had  indulged  his  vanity  by  erecting  a  two- 
story  dwelling.  Now  this  was  a  privilege  confined  to  the  Em- 
peror. Yuraiku  was  not  slow  to  assert  his  rights,  and  the  unfor- 
tunate noble  only  saved  his  property,  his  skin,  and  the  man  in  it, 
by  abject  submission  and  oiling  of  the  imperial  palm.  The  ordi- 
nary house,  therefore,  of  high  and  low,  was  a  one-storied  structure. 
In  the  very  early  days  it  had  been  built  over  running  water  and  the 
description  Mr.  Hitomi  gives  of  such  a  house  recalls  to  our  minds 
similar  structures  seen  in  the  Philippines  and  the  islands  to  the 
south  of  that  group.  The  later  house  described  by  Sir  Edward 
Satow — with  "  floor  low  down,  so  that  the  occupants  of  the  build- 
ing as  they  squatted  or  lay  on  this  mats,  were  exposed  to  the 
stealthy  attacks  of  venomous  snakes,  which  were  probably  far  more 
numerous  in  the  earlier  ages  when  the  country  was  for  the  most 
part  uncultivated  ...  the  yuka,  here  translated  floor,  orig- 
inally nothing  but  a  counter  which  ran  around  the  sides  of  the 
hut,  the  rest  of  the  space  being  simply  a  mud  floor  "•  —is  familiar 
to-day  all  through  the  mountain  districts,  and  it  is  the  gradual 
extension  of  this  yuka  that  makes  the  Japanese  home  of  to-day. 
It  is  warfare  and  the  chase,  coarse  feasts  in  which  the  flowing  bowl 
is  a  conspicuous  feature,  treacherous  plots  and  counterplots,  dances 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  299 

mimicking  triumph  over  foes,  poetry  in  which  the  dominating  idea 
is  a  paean  of  triumph  or  passion  that  makes  up  the  history  of  this 
epoch.  This  is  a  civilization  such  as  our  Anglo-Saxon  ancestors 
established  after  they  had  been  a  half  century  in  Britain,  a  civil- 
ization which  was  barbarian  compared  to  that  which  the  Britons 
had  inherited  from  their  Roman  masters. 

It  is  not  easy  to  get  a  chronological  parallel  at  this  point,  for 
just  as  Japan  is  on  the  edge  of  her  expansion  the  Roman  world 
was  breaking  up  under  the  hammer  of  the  North.  To  the  Italians 
it  is  unfair  to  compare  them.  It  is  these  latter  and  the  Greek 
settlements  in  south  Italy,  who,  through  all  the  turmoil  of  the 
fourth  to  the  eleventh  century,  carried  down  the  unity  of  European 
history  and  art.  The  Italians  are  essentially  not  the  heirs  but  the 
lineal  descendants  of  Rome.  In  spite  of  the  hordes  of  German 
barbarians  that  descended  on  her  and  ravaged  her  soil,  her  plebs, 
her  common  people,  held  their  own  both  in  customs  and  institu- 
tions. If  they  had  no  other  rallying  point  they  had  the  Bishop  of 
Rome,  and  to  Papal  Rome  they  owe  much  of  their  final  triumph 
over  the  invaders.  Slowly  they  emerge  again  in  the  tenth  century, 
still  retaining  laws  and  prejudices,  and  with  their  affection  for 
these  accentuated  by  hatred  of  everything  connected  with  the  bar- 
barians to  whom  they  owed  little  but  the  harsh  treatment  of  the 
"  mailed  fist  "  laid  on  through  centuries.  The  great  monarchy  of 
the  Franks  are  to  inherit  and  carry  on  the  civilization  of  Rome. 
They  will  soon  establish  their  centre  at  the  Roman  capital  of  Gaul, 
Lutetia,  now  Paris.  They  perhaps  form  a  better  comparison  to 
this  crude  people  we  have  under  our  eyes  in  this  eastern  world. 
Perhaps,  also,  Kimmei  can  be  safely  compared  to  those  Anglo- 
Saxon  kings  of  the  Heptarchy  antedating  the  introduction  of 
Christianity.  With  later  dates  the  parallel  grows  more  difficult. 
Europe's  dark  ages  lasted  from  the  fifth  to  the  eleventh  centuries, 
from  which  it  gradually  began  recovery  through  the  withering 
blight  of  Scholasticism  until  it  flowered  again  in  the  Renaissance. 
Japan's  dark  ages,  however,  had  very  much  a  reverse  development. 
After  a  glorious  bursting  forth  under  the  contact  of  Korean  and 


300  SAKURAMBO 

Chinese  artists  in  the  eighth  century  the  decline  began  with  the 
Taira  and  Minamoto  wars  of  the  twelfth  century,  and  under  the 
Ashikaga  Shoguns,  when  the  country  was  a  mere  congeries  of  war- 
ring barons  we  have  a  true  Age  of  Iron — the  Dark  Ages  of  Jap- 
anese Art.  It,  too,  had  its  Renaissance  when  Nobunaga  finally 
began  to  give  the  country  a  settled  and  centralized  government, 
and  under  the  peaceful  years  of  the  Tokugawa  it  reaches  its  highest 
development.  The  Japanese  art  of  the  eighth  to  the  tenth  century 
is  at  its  height  while  that  of  Europe  lies  palsied  under  the  cloud 
of  its  incessant  strifes.  It  is  not  until  the  twelfth  century  that 
Europe  begins  to  recover  from  its  paralysis  and  turn  to  its  ancient 
models;  and  it  is  just  this  period  which  marks  the  end  of  Japan's 
reign  of  peace  and  the  final  retirement  of  the  Emperors. 

There  is  no  great  difficulty  in  understanding  the  sudden  leap 
of  the  Japanese  into  civilization.  As  we  have  said,  while  not  an 
original  people,  they  have  a  natural  bent  toward  adapting  foreign 
ideas  to  their  uses.  The  early  art  as  shown  at  Horyuji  is  con- 
fessedly by  Korean  artists.  This  dates  from  the  end  of  the  seventh 
century,  and  subsequent  development  by  native  artists  is  rapid  and 
of  a  very  high  standard ;  but  it  is  to  be  remembered  that  for  two 
hundred  years  they  have  been  eagerly  learning  in  the  school  of  their 
continental  neighbours.  The  same  thing  happens  with  every  other 
nation.  Barbarian  Greece  brought  into  contact  with  Asia  Minor 
at  once  leaps  into  a  glorious  development  of  its  art  and  literature. 
The  beginnings,  of  course,  are  there,  but  being  inferior,  have  not 
been  preserved.  So  with  Rome  when  brought  under  the  inspira- 
tion of  Greece,  and  the  Renaissance  in  Europe  gave  little  sign  of 
its  coming.  This  is  the  case  not  only  with  the  first  efforts  of 
nations,  but  of  periods  of  art  within  a  nation.  The  flowering- 
has  been  as  sudden  as  with  one  of  nature's  products.  Although 
Korean  brains  and  native  labour  probably  built  and  decorated 
the  early  temples  at  Nara  they  had  apt  pupils,  and  a  time  of  peace 
during  which  the  Emperors  not  only  reigned  but  governed,  fostered 
its  early  development,  and  the  Koreans  had  very  different  pupils 
from  the  brave  but  stupid  Britons,  who  could  fight  with  their  arms 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  301 

and  be  annihilated,  instead  of  fighting  with  arms  and  civilization 
and  turning  the  tables  on  their  conquerers.  I  will  not  leave 
Yamato  with  these  temples  of  Ise,  but  taking  the  charming  rail- 
way ride  through  the  fine  gorge  scenery  to  Nara  and  Sakurai,  and 
walking  across  the  picturesque  country  between  Hase  and  Yoshino, 
take  my  leave  under  the  shadow  of  the  Yoshimizu  Jinja.  This 
whole  country  is  a  joy  to  the  walker  and  many  a  fine  temple  is 
sprinkled  through  its  groves.  Two  of  them  are  passed  on  this 
walk — at  Hase  and  again  at  Tonomine.  In  early  April  the  whole 
mountain  side  at  Yoshino  is  a  mass  of  the  pale  pink  cherry  blossom. 
There  is  a  full  sweep  over  the  rolling  mountain  country,  the  shining 
Yoshinogawa  in  the  valley  below,  and  last  but  not  least  is  the 
association  of  this  little  temple  with  Japan's  greatest  hero.  I  much 
prefer  to  leave  Yamato  with  Yoshitsune  and  Benkei  in  mind  rather 
than  the  shadowy  divinityships  of  the  Imperial  Line. 


Once  more  I  am  in  the  north,  in  the  Land  of  Kai.  I  had 
started  from  Shoji,  and  climbing  along  the  trail  overhanging  Lake 
Motosu  reached  the  narrow  ridge  barely  a  score  of  feet  in  width 
which  cuts  us  off  from  the  jumbled  country  to  the  west.  The  trail 
reminds  one  somewhat  of  many  similar  footways  cut  in  the  sides 
of  the  bare  California  hills,  with  small  indifference  as  to  the  steadi- 
ness of  head  and  the  ultimate  destination  of  the  wayfarer  if  he 
should  ever  get  started  down  the  steep  slopes.  There  is  no  sign, 
however,  of  crotalus  horridus  coiled  in  our  pathway  to  dispute  the 
narrow  passage,  and  the  scene  anything  but  recalls  that  far-off 
country.  Fuji  rises  in  a  beautiful  cone  across  the  waters  of  the 
lake,  perhaps  better  seen  from  this  point  than  any  other,  so  pure  are 
its  outlines.  As  I  turn  to  descend,  the  view  on  the  other  side  is 
equally  glorious.  The  big  fellows  of  the  Hida  ranges,  some  of 
them  nearly  the  height  of  Fuji,  are  piled  up  into  great  confused 
masses  beyond  the  Fujikawa.  They  are  forty  miles  away,  but 
even  from  this  distance  one  can  see  the  rugged  uncompromising 
nature  of  this  towering  mountain  mass  laid  athwart  this  main 


302  SAKURAMBO 

island  of  Hondo.  They  form  a  great  wall  on  the  side  of  the  Japan 
Sea.  Elsewhere  narrow  valleys  shut  in  by  their  craggy  summits 
twist  and  turn  into  the  bowels  of  the  mass,  but  there  are  few 
mountain  passes  to  carry  one  out  of  them  and  across  to  the  other 
side  of  the  plateau.  With  a  last  glance  at  Fuji  I  plunge  down  the 
steep  path  into  the  woods,  and  after  a  charming  walk  through  the 
valleys,  by  the  side  of  rushing  mountain  streams  and  across  the 
intervening  ridges,  reach  Yokkaichibi  early  in  the  afternoon. 
Here  I  am  soon  afloat  on  the  Fujikawa.  The  men  have  little  to 
do  and  we  have  but  a  short  distance  to  go.  A  sail  and  the  idle 
current  of  the  river  does  all  the  work  and  in  a  couple  of  hours  the 
boat  is  hauled  up  on  the  shore  and  I  march  off  to  cover  the  three 
miles  still  necessary  to  reach  the  little  mountain  hamlet  of  Minobu. 
Minobu  is  a  tiny  place,  but  it  is  one  that  makes  much  noise — 
metaphorically  and  physically — in  this  Japanese  world.  It  was 
toward  the  end  of  his  stormy  life  that  Nichiren  settled  among 
these  mountains,  established  a  shrine,  and  preached  his  doctrine  of 
regeneration  of  things  spiritual  in  the  Japan  of  his  day.  From 
the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century  Naniu  Myoho  Renge  Kyo,  "  Oh ! 
The  Scripture  of  the  Lotus  of  the  wonderful  Law,"  has  resounded 
from  the  walls  of  the  Minobu  temples,  the  echo  of  the  fervent 
prayers  of  his  disciples  and  followers.  As  the  old  monk  felt  his 
powers  failing,  he  left  Minobu  to  come  down  to  the  Kwanto  plain, 
and  died  where  now  is  the  little  village  of  Ikegami  near  Tokyo  and 
where  a  splendid  temple  marks,  not  his  last  resting-place  but  his 
last  breathing-place.  Nichiren,  like  most  reformers,  was  unpleas- 
antly polemical  and  highly  obnoxious  to  the  powers  that  were.  His 
followers  followed  in  the  train  of  their  chief  and  many  a  battle 
was  fought  in  the  streets  of  Kyoto  with  the  enthusiasts  of  other 
sects.  He  was  banished  several  times,  and  Tokimune  Ho  jo,  the 
great  regent,  finally  determined  to  get  rid  of  him  once  and  for  all 
by  the  simple  process  that  so  often  recommended  itself  to  rulers 
in  those  and  later  days — viz. :  chopping  off  his  head.  Many  will 
remember  the  scene  of  the  intended  execution,  the  little  village  of 
Koshigoe  opposite  Enoshima,  where  the  divine  interposition  turned 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO 

aside  the  executioner's  sword.  Nichiren  evidently  did  not  intend 
to  trust  to  a  second  miracle,  for  he  quieted  down  very  much  after 
this  exploit,  and  on  his  return  from  a  short  period  of  banishment 
retired  here  to  Minobu.  One  hears  and  gets  so  much  of  temples 
in  Japan  that  I  think  the  average  tourist  is  more  than  ready  to 
cry  enough.  Unless  one  is  interested  in  their  old  traditions  they 
do  carry  but  little  attraction.  Architecturally  most  of  them  are 
uninteresting.  If  one  has  seen  Nikko  and  Shiba,  Nara,  and  the 
Hongwanji  temples  of  Kyoto,  they  carry  away  with  them  all  the 
idea  they  could  wish  of  Japanese  religious  symbols.  Minobu, 
however,  is  one  instance  that  could  be  added  to  this  list.  As  we 
stand  in  the  little  chapel  in  which  rests  the  bones  of  the  saint  we 
are  surrounded  by  all  the  art  and  skill  that  the  native  can  show 
us  in  these  days.  And  a  blaze  of  glory  it  is.  The  priest  and  his 
acolyte  chant  an  invocation  as  they  slowly  and  reverently  open 
the  pyx,  in  which  rests  the  crystal  vase  containing  the  bones  of  the 
saint.  One  cannot  help  being  impressed  with  the  idea  that  Nichi- 
ren was  not  only  a  large  man  politically  and  polemically,  but  also 
physically.  There  are  a  sight  of  bones.  Indeed,  we  afterwards 
have  far  more  trust  in  the  wide  distribution  of  some  of  our  western 
saints  so  liberally  scattered  among  the  different  churches.  If  they 
only  would  not  duplicate  too  often  parts  of  the  body  strictly  limited 
in  number,  and  which  stamp  some  of  our  holy  men  as  undeniable 
freaks,  with  fingers  by  the  dozen  and  teeth  by  the  score,  hair 
enough  to  set  up  an  upholsterer's  establishment,  and  bones  enough 
to  start  a  glue  factory. 

As  we  gaze  on  the  bones  of  Nichiren  it  is  hard  to  understand 
how  such  an  accidental  method  of  burial  by  simple  interment  re- 
mained fastened  on  the  Christian  dogma.  Opposition  to  pagan 
methods  and  the  influence  of  old  Jewish  custom  was  of  course  its 
origin.  The  East  knew  not  what  they  did  but  they  undoubtedly 
stumbled  on  by  far  the  most  sanitary  method  of  getting  rid  of  the 
dead,  especially  as  living  man  has  always  insisted  on  keeping  the 
remains  as  near  as  possible  to  his  dwelling  places.  Even  in  these 
davs  of  science,  and  of  which  we  in  the  ^^est  boast  as  our  special 


304  SAKURAMBO 

inheritance,  there  is  among  the  body  of  the  population  as  much 
prejudice   against   cremation   as   there   was   centuries   ago.     The 
sleek  burghers  of  the  average  country  town — the   butcher,   the 
baker,  the  candlestick-maker,  and  the  blacksmith — will  meet   in 
town  council  and  eloquently  denounce  typhoid  fever  and  the  bad 
water  supply,  and  just  as  eloquently  denounce  the  heathen  practice 
of  cremation  and  the  proposition  to  establish  a  furnace  in  the  town 
— for  anything  but  garbage.     Europe  is  far  less  finicky  over  this 
point  than  we  are  in  America.     In  Havana,  one  of  the  few  Euro- 
pean cities  left  on  the  western  side  of  the  Atlantic,  the  rule  is 
"  no  pay,  no  stay."     When  the  corpse's  leasehold  expires,  unless  it 
is  renewed  he  is  unceremoniously  tumbled  out  to  go  on  the  bone 
heap  and  make  room  for  fresher  material.     Leases  are  short,  and 
with  the  poorer  classes  are   seldom   renewed.     Minobusan   is   a 
good  example  of  the  Church  Militant.     As  we  sit  in  the  gorgeous 
main  temple,  surrounded  with  all  the  paraphernalia  and  glitter  of  a 
great  creed  and  listen  to  its  sonorous  ritual,  we  are  carried  back 
in  mind  thousands  of  miles  to  the  other  side  of  the  globe.     We 
have  intentionally  carried  in  many  things  a  parallel  to  Italian  life 
in  "  Things  Japanese."     As  a  people,  the  Japanese  have  not  that 
careless  gayety  of  the  French,  that  innate  spirit  of  genial  scepticism 
which  makes  the  "  eat,  drink,  and  be  merry,  for  to-morrow  we 
die,"  the  real  substratum  of  the  national  thought.     As  little  have 
they  the  gloomy  striving  to  raise  things  mundane  to  an  ideal  basis, 
so  common  among  the  Germanic  races,  a  striving  of  which  they 
recognize  the  uselessness  and  which  degenerates  into  the  exagger- 
ated pessimism  of  their  greatest  thinkers.     Rather  it  is  that  spirit 
so  common  in  Italian  and  Spanish  writers,  recognizing  the  gravity 
of  the  incubus  that  rests  on  man,  unable  to  get  away  from  it  in  the 
manner  of  the  more  volatile  Frenchman,  unwilling  to  attempt  use- 
less palliation,  as  with  the  German  races.     Shigata  ga  nai.     When 
we  see  the  bands  of  pilgrims  moving  through  the  streets  of  these 
holy  places,  raising  their  monotonous  songs,  dragging  along  the 
weaker  members  and  rousing  up  their  spirits  with  their  own  holy 
enthusiasm,  one  calls  to  mind  some  of  the  scenes  witnessed  at 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  305 

famous  shrines  of  southern  Europe.  There  are  no  such  terrible 
episodes  as  d'Annunzio  describes  for  us  in  his''  Triumph  of  Death," 
and  for  that  we  can  be  thankful  to  the  relation  of  the  Japanese 
to  his  gods;  but  the  colour  and  glitter,  banners  and  excitement, 
are  all  there.  A  temple  with  the  foreground  covered  with  these 
people  and  their  standards,  reverently  uncovered  before  the  shrine 
which  they  have  tramped  miles  to  reach,  putting  up  their  heartfelt 
petitions,  almost  demands  to  be  heard,  can  be  easily  read  into 
western  manners.  The  raincoats  and  broad  hats  and  dark  faces 
.are  but  the  external  husk  covering  a  similar  idea.  And  the 
smooth-shaven,  silently  observant  priests  are  another  phase  of  the 
same  idea,  and  here  as  elsewhere  represent  the  triumph  of  mind 
-over  matter. 

On  a  fine  morning  I  was  again  on  my  way  down  the  river. 
The  Fujikawa  below  Minobu  is  a  grand  stream.  I  was  practically 
alone  with  it,  for  the  gulf  that  existed  between  the  stranger  and 
the  boatmen — a  gulf  widened  by  difference  of  race,  of  language, 
and  of  thought — made  us  reciprocally  so  much  inert  "  baggage  " 
to  each  other.  I  think  it  is  under  the  shadow  of  these  great 
mountain  masses,  or  gliding  under  the  great  vault  of  the  sky 
studded  with  stars  and  in  the  expanse  of  some  such  lonely  sea  as 
the  South  Pacific,  that  one  gets  a  more  physical  nearness  to  the 
idea  of  one's  humanity  as  a  very  trifling  item  in  the  makeup  of 
this  universe.  They  seem  so  vast  and  so  old,  that  our  lives  are 
really  but  little  more  in  comparison  than  the  lives  of  the  bright 
coloured  insects  darting  and  dodging  before  our  eyes.  We  cannot 
help  thinking,  that  as  they  have  witnessed  the  hundreds  of  thou- 
sands of  years  past,  so  they  will  witness  the  ages  of  the  future, 
when  not  only  we  but  even  thinkable  generations  have  all  gone  to 
dust.  These  same  hills,  on  which  we  gaze,  impassively  witnessed 
the  antics  of  strange  beasts  so  utterly  foreign  to  our  conception 
that  we  can  only  draw  a  fanciful  figure  of  them  from  their  scanty 
remains  and  clothe  it  in  the  figment  of  our  present  experience. 
They  will  just  as  impassively  witness  what  comes  after  us,  and  of 
-which  we  are  so  unable  to  form  a  conception,  that  in  spite  of  the 

20 


306  SAKURAMBO 

long  record  of  the  past  we  proudly  assume  that  the  future  will 
merely  be  a  continuation  of  to-day  and  that  we  are  the  culmination 
of  this  gigantic  scheme  of  evolution  unfolding  before  us.  Man 
indeed  strikes  the  stars  with  his  lofty  head,  but  he  is  sometimes 
brought  to  earth  and  reality  in  other  ways  than  the  necessity  of 
earning  bread  and  butter. 

My  men  (as  usual)  put  on  steam  as  we  approached  the  sea 
and  managed  to  catch  the  train  and  a  good  "  drink  present  " — a  not 
unknown  feature  of  this  trip.  I  stopped  for  the  night  at  the  pleas- 
ant little  hot  spring  of  Shuzenji  in  Izu,  which  I  remember  in  con- 
nection with  one  of  those  upsetting  exhibitions  which  often  happen 
in  this  country  of  delightful  oddities.  Shuzenji  is  noted  for  a  hot 
spring  which  rises  in  a  rock,  the  said  rock  itself  rising  in  the  middle 
of  the  brawling  little  river.  A  footbridge  crosses  to  the  bath,  and 
watching  the  stream  idly  one  rainy  day  I  saw  a  Jap  carefully  step 
on  the  bridge  and  make  his  way  to  the  bath.  He  did  not  have  on 
much  in  the  way  of  clothes  anyhow,  but  what  he  had  he  deposited 
under  a  little  shelter  erected  near  the  bath,  and  going  down  to  the 
stream,  carefully  protecting  his  naked  body  under  his  umbrella, 
proceeded  to  perform  his  preliminary  ablutions — out  of  the  wet. 
As  to  just  what  particularly  harmful  effects  are  supposed  to  belong 
to  rain  from  the  sky  as  distinguished  from  rain  in  the  river,  I  am 
still  in  the  dark.  Having  well  washed  himself,  he  went  back  to  take 
the  usual  stew,  and  the  last  I  noted  was  his  black  head  just  emerg- 
ing from  the  water — without  the  umbrella.  You  lie  in  your  bath 
at  Shuzenji  with  the  tumbling  waves  of  the  river  fairly  galloping 
down  on  top  of  you  and  only  separated  by  some  boarding  and  a 
lattice  window.  A  sluice  enables  you  to  turn  the  river  into  your 
bath  and  temper  its  fierce  heat  to  your  more  or  less  tender  skin. 
Altogether,  I  was  pleased  with  Shuzenji,  and  its  excellent  inns,  and 


IX 


NUNC  DIMITTIS 

"  Straziante  dolcezza  di  qtiel  Novembre  sorridente  come 
tin  infermo  che  ha  una  tregua  al  suo  patire  e  sa  che  e 
1'ultima  e  assapora  la  vita  che  con  una  grazia  novelli  gli 
scopre  i  suoi  piu  delicati  sapori  nel  punti  di  abban- 
donarlo." 

— Roinanzi  del  Melegrano. 

What  then  is  the  real  meaning  of  this  strange  civilization 
which  we  have  under  our  eyes?  Its  outward  seeming  is  fair 
enough.  As  we  see  the  really  beautiful  picture  of  the  Japanese 
home,  with  the  marked  respect  shown  to  age  by  youth ;  as  we  see 
the  self-contained  courteous  demeanor  of  all  classes  of  society  in 
their  dealings  with  each  other;  as  we  see  the  Government  care- 
fully watchful  to  hurry  its  freshening  influence  into  those  corners 
of  the  national  life,  whether  of  education  or  sanitation,  which 
show  signs  of  anaemia;  are  we  not  likely  to  overlook  the  pivot 
on  which  the  whole  structure  rests,  stable  enough  while  it  remains 
in  its  present  condition,  but  which  once  out  of  gear  throws  the 
whole  system  back  on  the  resources  of  its  constituent  units  to  find 
that  there  is  no  reserve  fund ;  to  find  that  these  units  have  no  basis 
apart  from  the  community,  that  they  are  unaccustomed  to  act 
alone,  by  laws  based  on  general  principles  applicable  to  the  whole 
human  race,  and  furthermore  to  principles  having  their  grounding 
in  Nature's  general  law  of  compensation — "  reaction  and  action 
are  opposite  and  equal  "  ?  It  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  I  do 
not  here  refer  to  the  upper  classes.  As  everywhere  else,  there  is  in 
that  quarter  a  very  undifferentiated  product  in  these  modern  days. 
They  are  educated  in  all  the  learning  of  the  modern  world.  Their 
moral  and  social  code,  judging  by  outward  results,  is  not  a  whit 
different  from  the  man  of  the  same  class  half  way  round  the  world, 
except  in  that  peculiar  bias  which  so  limits  the  Japanese  horizon 

307 


308  SAKURAMBO 

and  which  unconsciously  crops  out  when  they  deal  with  "  Things 
Japanese."  They  have  ruled  the  nation — and  ruled  it  thoroughly 
—for  fourteen  hundred  years  of  authentic  history,  and  it  is  their 
business  now  to  "  sit  tight."  It  is  in  their  relation  to  the  lower 
classes  that  the  Japanese  upper  classes  have  failed.  They  are 
of  them  but  above  them,  not  a  part  of  them.  Widely  separated 
into  a  caste  to  whose  level  there  is  no  effort  made  to  raise  the  body 
of  the  nation.  The  whole  trend  of  the  social  training  is  to  empha- 
size this  separation  and  to  maintain  this  leadership  of  the  nation 
in  the  caste.  We  have  said  something  of  Bushido,  that  knightly 
code  which  can  be  compared  to  the  knightly  code  of  Europe,  and 
which  in  its  practical  application,  misapplication,  and  lack  of  appli- 
cation, closely  parallels  to-day  the  similar  code  in  force  in  the 
West.  Let  us  see  how  far  the  knightly  caste  have  gone  in  their 
duty  of  impressing  it  on  the  nation  as  a  means  of  raising  the 
general  standard. 

Now  it  is  hardly  fair  to  cull  choice  extracts  from  the  millions 
of  soldiers'  letters  and  cite  them  as  instances  of  the  delicacy, 
feeling  and  high  standard  of  the  Japanese  people  at  large.  There 
are  presumably  thousands  of  men  of  education  sprinkled  through 
the  rank  and  file  of  the  Japanese  army,  and  the  general  practice 
of  poetical  composition  through  the  mass  of  the  people  would  give 
an  idea  of  them  not  exactly  in  accordance  with  the  idea  we  get  of 
them  on  more  prosaic  occasions.  For  high  patriotic  sentiment 
and  earnestness  of  purpose  such  letters  can  be  matched  in  many 
similar  publications  made  in  America  and  Europe.  America  and 
England  would  fare  badly,  I  admit,  on  the  poetic  side.  We  most 
decidedly  have  no  general  gift  that  way;  but  perhaps  the  Latin 
nations,  and  very  particularly  Germany,  would  compare  quite 
favourably  with  anything  Japanese.  Hans  has  an  unaccountable 
poetic  strain  in  his  makeup  which  makes  him  burst  into  anything 
ranging  in  theme  from  the  "  Wacht  am  Rhein  "  to  the  "  Sorrows 
of  Werther."  This  is  not  exactly  the  question.  It  is  rather — 
What  is  at  the  bottom  of  the  Japanese  character?  What  remains 
when  we  strip  it  of  its  external  wrappings  of  conventionalism? 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  309 

One  of  the  kindliest  and  truest  of  their  delineators — as  to  one  side 
of  their  character — tells  us  that  we  will  find  wrapped  up  at  the 
bottom  of  the  soul  of  the  Japanese  a  core  unbending  and  hard  as  a 
stone ;  that  if  once,  by  any  accident  of  word  or  deed,  you  strip  the 
covering  and  strike  against  the  man  stripped  down  to  his  very 
soul,  you  will  find  about  as  hard,  uncompromising,  unforgiving 
a  character  as  you  can  find  among  any  race  or  people.  I  think 
a  good  deal  of  this  is  due  to  the  moral  code  of  the  nation  being 
based  on  Duty.  Love  is  so  unknown  that  it  is  hard  to  find  a 
word  to  express  it  with  our  meaning  of  the  term.  Carnal  love  is 
plentifully  supplied  with  terms  of  endearment.  Moral  duties  run 
through  a  whole  gamut  of  expressions.  Moral  love,  the  kindly 
feeling  of  the  oneness  of  humanity,  goes  begging  for  some  ade- 
quate form  of  expression.  To  this  extent  the  code  of  the  upper 
classes  has  been  imposed  on  the  lower;  namely,  that  the  latter 
hear  much  of  Duty.  Duty  spelt  \vith  the  largest  kind  of  a  capital 
letter. 

The  standard  imposed  on  the  Japanese  people  is  purely  one  of 
tradition.  Each  class  is  strictly  limited  to  its  own  bounds,  and  its 
duty  is  laid  down  for  each  circumstance  that  may  arise  toward 
other  classes.  The  separation  of  each  class  from  other  classes  is 
not  left  to  the  instinctive  habit  of  every  man  to  consort  with  his 
kind.  It  is  ensured  by  the  most  drastic  legislation  specifically 
directed  to  crushing  out  any  too  great  extension  of  interests  among 
the  people  at  large.  But  this  is  not  enough.  To  be  sure,  if  the 
general  association  of  men  is  fostered,  they  are  sure  to  find  com- 
mon ground  entirely  apart  from  their  immediate  pressing  interests. 
The  sphere  will  be  widened,  and  the  individual  man  will  find  him- 
self regarding  outside  affairs  entirely  apart  from  the  other  units 
making  up  his  immediate  society.  All  the  more  reason  to  strictly 
shut  him  up  inside  the  horizon  of  his  caste.  Let  us  go  a  step 
farther  and  shut  him  up  inside  the  limits  of  the  family.  Here  is 
sphere  enough  for  his  individual  aspirations.  These  we  will  limit, 
however,  by  all  the  powerful  bonds  of  the  religious  code,  and  we 
will  so  entangle  all  the  members  of  the  family  in  this  mesh  of 


310  SAKURAMBO 

interacting  duties  that  they  will  never  be  able  to  act  except  as  a  unit. 
Now  we  have  our  man  where  we  want  him.  Any  event  that  may 
calf  up  his  kindly  feelings  as  an  individual  must  first  carefully  be 
judged  as  to  how  it  may  affect  the  other  members  of  this  "  Siam- 
ese twins "  organization.  If  in  the  kindness  of  his  heart  he 
should  violate  any  of  these  traditional  rules  the  community  will 
inevitably  condemn  him.  The  moral  desirability  of  his  action  has 
nothing  to  do  with  it.  The  community  may  actually  agree  in  its 
desirability  to  the  particular  case,  but  they  cannot  afford  to  have 
the  individual  set  himself  up  as  judge  over  a  matter  which  may 
influence  all.  For  this  reason  the  rules  were  framed.  It  is  easy 
to  see  that  every  extension  of  sympathy  from  class  to  class  was 
thus  cut  off.  An  eta  or  a  member  of  the  outlaw  class  could  hope 
for  no  aid  or  protection  from  anything  but  his  insignificance.  To 
make  any  effort  to  raise  or  improve  these  dregs  of  the  State  was 
therefore  prohibited  by  the  nature  of  the  code.  Where,  there- 
fore, the  code  not  only  does  not  foster  but  prohibits  that  kindly 
interest  in  things  human,  it  is  not  hard  to  see  that  charity  receives 
a  severe  check  at  the  very  source  from  which  it  should  receive 
encouragement.  The  State  here  puts  its  own  interpretation  on  the 
doctrine  of  Shinto,  "  Follow  the  dictates  of  your  own  hearts  "  sub- 
stituting therefor  "  Follow  the  rules."  A  substitution  indeed  of 
the  Way  of  Men  for  the  Way  of  the  Gods. 

The  State  has  therefore  left  nothing  of  the  individual  in  his 
relation  to  the  community,  and  it  leaves  as  little  in  his  relation  to 
the  family.  Here,  too,  all  spontaneity  is  cut  off.  He  is  set  in  the 
midst  of  formulae  which  he  must  have  at  his  fingers  ends.  Pre- 
cedence is  carefully  established  by  rule.  He  is  responsible  for 
everybody  and  they  are  all  responsible  for  him.  He  must  look  at 
the  outside  world  with  the  average  eyes  of  the  family,  and  we  know 
that  when  an  organ  is  not  exercised  it  soon  atrophies.  We  can 
say  outright  that  his  kindness  is  not  a  trait  of  personality.  It,  too, 
is  listed  under  his  duties  and  its  limitations  strictly  defined.  The 
great  charity  organizations  of  the  West  were  unknown  to  the 
Japanese.  It  is  their  contact  with  foreigners  that  has  aroused  the 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  311 

spirit  of  imitation.  Stress  of  modern  war — commercial  and  actual 
— has  shown  that  the  old  system  was  ineffective.  Where  whole 
classes  were  involved  in  the  general  distress  it  was  too  much  of  a 
paradox  to  expect  them  to  find  aid  in  their  own  ranks.  An  aid 
which  would  have  amounted  to  a  general  fellowship  in  starving 
together.  It  is  an  interesting  instance  how  great  national  peril 
aroused  people  to  this  feature  of  their  organization,  or  rather  lack 
of  organization.  Bands  of  young  men  went  around  their  neigh- 
bourhoods, ploughing  and  working  the  land  for  the  men  absent 
fighting  at  the  front.  If  the  same  man  had  been  sick  or  helpless 
with  disease  he  must  rely  on  just  the  amount  of  aid  his  family  can 
give  him  and  they  may  be  nearly  as  badly  off  themselves.  Now  it 
seems  to  me  that  in  his  lack  of  individuality  there  is  a  very  serious 
lapse  in  the  Japanese  character.  It  consists  in  that  feature  known 
as  self-control.  We  all  know  of  the  man  who  is  "  legally  honest." 
Who  as  long  as  he  does  not  transgress  the  criminal  code  is  a 
good  man.  We  do  not  think  much  of  him  in  the  West  and  are 
rather  glad  when  he  shaves  a  bit  too  close  and  gets  landed  in  the 
District  Attorney's  office.  Now  our  self-control  is  both  national 
and  individual,  and  it  is  very  admirably  developed  in  many  ways 
in  our  western  world  and  very  largely  due  to  the  abnormal  develop- 
ment of  our  individualism.  As  far  as  the  individual  is  concerned 
the  wrath  of  the  community  falls  far  more  heavily  than  when  the 
shield  of  the  family  is  interposed  to  take  the  responsibility  and 
settle  for  his  acts.  A  man,  therefore,  facing  the  community  alone, 
is  far  more  careful  in  what  his  acts  imply.  He  judges  them 
according  to  his  own  personal  resources,  and  as  to  how  far  he  is 
able  to  stand  the  shock  if  they  should  be  questioned.  He  cannot 
be  careless  as  to  results.  Now  this  sort  of  a  man  is  likely  to  have 
a  pretty  wide  sweep  in  his  mental  horizon.  He  is  human  and  he 
is  weak,  and  knows  his  weakness  and  can  understand  and  sympa- 
thize with  it  in  others.  The  wider  his  outlook  the  more  easily  he 
can  overlook  the  mistakes  of  those  less  gifted.  You  can  put  it 
down  to  the  fact  that  he  sees  the  limitations  of  and  dangers  arising 
from  any  evil  deed  and  hence  he  avoids  it,  or  you  can  put  it  down 


SAKURAMBO 

to  a  perception  of  unimportance  of  any  single  action  in  the  great 
round  of  the  world's  life;  but  his  self-control  is  not  limited  by 
rules  and  regulations,  it  is  limited  by  the  wider  vision  of  his 
personal  experience.  Thousands  of  men  in  the  West  are  governed 
by  rules  and  regulations  and  the  desire  to  keep  within  the  law, 
but  this  class  of  higher  men,  it  seems  to  me,  is  much  more  exten- 
sively developed  West  than  East.  He  permeates  all  classes  of 
society,  and  you  find  the  man  who  would  not  do  an  unfair  thing, 
who  despises  chicanery,  whose  field  of  chanty  is  only  limited  by 
his  resources,  quite  as  often  among  the  lower  classes  as  among  the 
higher.  And  the  more  rules  you  pile  on,  the  less  you  develop  this 
spirit. 

Japanese  self-control  seems  to  me  decidedly  negative.  It  is 
based  on  the  grinding  down  of  the  individual  under  the  friction  of 
endless  rules.  You  can  hardly  ascribe  any  high  position  to  an 
individual's  actions  when  he  is  acting  not  as  individual  but  as 
community ;  when  his  standard  is  simply  one  of  tradition  and  not 
based  on  the  higher  one  of  moral  right.  It  must  be  confessed  it 
is  not  his  fault.  If  the  Japanese  merchant  conducted  his  business 
on  principles  based  on  Bushido  certainly  not  a  word  of  complaint 
would  be  heard  of  his  methods.  In  fact,  he  would  probably  be 
stripped  to  his  skin  by  his  rivals,  for  the  knightly  code  of  gracefully 
tendering  the  sun  to  one's  adversary  would  hardly  answer  in  these 
strenuous  days.  But  if  his  life,  apart  from  business,  was  based  on 
Bushido  he  would  have  evolved  a  much  better  business  code  than 
he  has  been  able  to  do  out  of  Duty.  With  a  better  code,  however, 
he  was  not  allowed  to  meddle.  Left  to  himself  the  game  has  been 
to  the  craftiest,  with  no  umpire  of  higher  standard  to  see  that  it 
was  played  fairly.  The  high  standard  of  the  upper  class  cannot 
be  applied  down  in  the  scale  where  men  were  strictly  confined 
within  their  own  limits  of  thought  as  applied  to  their  means  of 
livelihood.  Hence  we  find  the  farmer  ranked  next  to  the  soldier, 
then  the  artisan — and  last  of  all  the  man  who  lives  by  his  wits,  the 
merchant  and  middleman.  But  they  are  all  a  brave  people.  Island 
races  usually  are  brave.  And  intensely  national,  sometimes  amus- 


THE    LAND    OF    YAMATO  313 

ingly  so.  There  are  few  low-class  Japanese  who  would  not  prefer 
their  stinking  tobacco  to  an  Havana  cigar.  Among  their  man- 
hood you  will  rarely  find  that  openness  of  the  western  disposition 
which  is  such  a  gracious  feature  of  the  West.  The  westerner  is 
not  afraid  to  express  his  humanity.  He  rarely  has  anything  to 
conceal.  His  very  speech  is  open  and  direct.  Not  so  the  east- 
erner. Much  weight  is  to  be  given  to  words,  and  more  especially 
to  the  ideographs  expressing  words,  and  which  may  have  very  dif- 
ferent meanings  under  the  same  sound.  And  as  his  language  is 
doubtful  so  at  times  are  his  methods.  His  national  means  of 
defence  is  Jiu-Jitsu  and  much  was  heard  of  it  until  its  exponents 
displayed  it  pro  forma  to  the  foreign  public.  The  American  Press 
on  the  whole  was  rather  unanimous  on  the  subject  of  Jiu-Jitsu.  I 
remember  an  editorial  on  the  subject  in  a  paper  rather  given  to 
the  heavy  side  of  guiding  public  opinion  and  rarely  descending  into 
such  fields  for  editorial  exposition.  Jin-Jitsn  was  freely  de- 
nounced as  the  apotheosis  of  the  foul  blow  which  the  Anglo-Saxon 
had  taken  such  pains  to  eliminate  from  his  sports.  Jiu-Jitsu  as  an 
athletic  institution  was  rather  downed  by  the  husky  athletes  of 
West  Point  vi  et  armis,  which,  let  us  hope,  obviates  any  danger  of 
its  adoption  as  a  national  institution  in  America. 

One  must  admire  the  Japanese  wit  and  their  ingenuity  in  the 
small  things  which  every  toy  shop  displays.  Countless  ingenious 
toys  show  that  what  the  race  needed  \vas  polish  with  other  wits  to 
develop  its  best.  A  people  of  course  must  be  held  responsible  for 
their  own  actions,  but  the  Japanese  owe  a  heavy  grudge  to  the 
men  who  shut  them  out  of  the  race  for  so  many  years.  Much  do 
they  owe  to  the  selfishness  of  the  caste  who  had  so  little  foresight 
and  ambition  as  to  support  their  rulers  in  such  action.  The  people 
never  make  themselves  heard.  Submissively  they  accepted  the 
iron  chain  that  Chinese  philosophy  threw  around  them.  It  seems 
to  be  in  the  Mongol  blood,  this  submission  to  the  past.  Their  very 
guilds  are  based  on  it.  The  development  of  the  Commons,  the 
rise  of  great  free  cities  like  the  Italian  Communes  or  the  Hanse 
towns,  was  an  impossibility  with  this  race.  They  have  adopted 


SAKURAMBO 

it  from  the  western  world;   whether  they  can  develop  any  of  the 
great  problems  of  modern  times  is  doubtful.     They  have  certainly 
shown  no  such  qualities  in  their  seclusion.     Beautiful  brush  work, 
intricate  and  spirited  carvings  in  miniature,  elaborate  embroider- 
ies, lacquer  with  a  smoothness  and  strength  never  surpassed ;   but 
their  material  civilization  has  stood  still.     Mentally,  perhaps,  they 
are  a  proof  of  a  statement  often  made,  that  man's  philosophical 
attainments  have  never  gotten  beyond  that  Golden  Age  of  the  world, 
when  India  arid  China  in  the  East  and  Greece  in  the  West  not  only 
laid  its  foundations  but  built  the  magnificent  superstructure.     We 
base  our  philosophy  to-day  on  the  old  Greek  philosophy  and  merely 
have  adapted  its  tenets  to  our  modern  materialism.     It  is  to  be 
hoped  that  before  the  old  system  of  mutual  courtesy  is  worn  away 
that  some  substitute  will  be  found  to  take  its  place.     Strip  the  Jap- 
anese of  their  traditional  politeness,  they  have  as  yet  little  to  fall 
back  on,  and. without  it  they  would  be  unbearable.     The  views  of 
foreigners  as  to  the  Japanese  differ  much  according  to  the  point 
of  view,  and  it  is  no  easy  matter  to  strike  the  balance  between  the 
discords.     The   Japanese   take   care   that   those   attached   to   trfe 
Legations  shall  see  the  pleasant  side,  and  hence  from  such  circles  a 
chorus  of  praise  can  be  said  to  arise,  only  neutralized  by  the 
unsparing  anathemas  of  the  foreign  merchants  who  often  see  only 
the  bad  side  of  the  people.     If  you  discount  his  professional  bias 
perhaps  the  fair-minded  missionary — and  there  are  such  men — will 
give  you  a  better  idea  of  the  Japanese  people  than  any  other  resi- 
dent foreigner.     He  is  certainly  far  closer  to  their  daily  life  than 
either  of  the  other  two  classes,  but  he  must  be  caught  out  of 
business  hours  and  not  allowed  to  talk  ex  cathedra. 

We  have  then  a  people  with  all  the  traits  of  a  highly  civilized 
society  together  with  many  primitive  ones  crystallized  into  their 
system  by  the  early  adoption  of  an  unbending  formula  within 
which  only  the  system  can  develop.  Let  us  turn  for  a  moment 
to  look  at  our  western  civilization  and  see  how  the  guiding  power 
acts  there.  The  people  make  themselves  heard.  Both  the  Ger- 
man "  folk  "  and  the  Roman  "  plebs  ".  have  political  value,  that  in 


XUNC    DIMITIS  315 

the  case  of  the  latter  lasts  down  to  the  time  of  the  Empire,  and  in 
the  case  of  the  former  down  to  the  establishment  of  the  feudal 
system  in  the  seventh  century.  In  the  earliest  days  of  such  interpre- 
tation— the  days  of  the  feudal  system  and  the  beginnings  of  the 
canon  law — the  king"" is  such  ''by  divine  right,"  not  by  his  own 
divinity.  The  people  undoubtedly  suffered  practical  extinction 
during  these  feudal  ages,  but  the  spirit  was  still  there  nourished 
by  all  the  prejudices  of  the  race,  and  the  feudal  system  by  its  very 
constitution — its  diversity  of  interest  between  lord  and  fiefholder — 
carried  in  it  the  seeds  of  its  death.  As  the  powers  became  evenly 
balanced,  one  or  the  other  looked  around  for  allies,  and  of  which 
there  was  but  one  source — the  People.  Whether  king  and  people 
against  the  nobles,  as  in  France,  or  barons  and  people  against  the 
king,  as  in  England,  the  people  were  able  to  buy  their  way  into 
influence  and  power.  And  where  the  people  cut  no  figure  in  this 
controversy,  in  time  the  State  is  bound  to  fall  to  pieces  from  the 
heterogeneity  of  its  warring  interests,  as  in  Poland.  The  people 
therefore  have  been  brought  into  close  contact  with  their  leaders. 
The  upper  and  lower  classes  have  gradually  coalesced  until  to-day 
it  is  the  people  who  largely  rule  in  modern  Europe,  even  in  those 
aristocratic  states  where  the  privileged  classes  have  managed  to 
gain  pre-emption  in  certain  high  offices — on  condition  of  main- 
taining their  efficiency. 

Now  the  important  point  here  is  the  close  contact  of  the  upper 
and  lower  classes.  The  lines  fade  into  each  other.  And  it  is  not 
the  upper  classes  that  have  come  down  to  the  standard  of  the 
lower  classes,  but  it  is  the  latter  that  have  risen,  and  are  gradually 
raising  themselves.  The  standard  of  western  life  in  the  upper 
classes  is  at  least  as  high  as  anything  in  the  East.  I  think  it  is 
higher,  inasmuch  as  the  individual  rules  his  conduct  on  simple 
general  principles  of  ethics  unmodified  by  any  code  based  on 
loyalty  to  a  political  system  and  making  that  the  object  of  the  code. 
Men  in  the  bottom  of  their  souls  highly  applaud  the  sentiment, 
"  My  Country — right  or  wrong,"  and  on  some  occasions  we  exer- 
cise all  our  powers  of  casuistry  to  make  the  right  of  a  matter  fall 


316  SAKURAMBO 

on  our  side  of  the  fence.  But  after  all  it  is  not  the  highest  standard 
although  it  takes  rare  courage  to  break  with  it.  We  may  regard 
the  conscientious  protest  more  than  once  made  in  America  and 
England  against  national  acts  as  mistaken,  but  we  respect  its 
source.  I  doubt  very  much  if  such  open  dissent  from  the  voice 
of  the  community  as  was  heard  in  America  at  the  time  of  the 
Spanish  war,  or  in  England  at  the  time  of  the  Boer  war,  would  be 
tolerated  in  Japan.  The  Japanese  has  not  that  much  width  of 
mental  horizon.  His  code  always  carries  a  rider  attached,  that 
it  applies  to  "  Things  Japanese,"  and  outside  actions  must  adjust 
themselves  to  it.  He  never  dreams  of  widening  its  range,  never 
perhaps  suspects  the  narrowness  of  such  range. 

The  relations  between  upper  and  lower  classes  are  therefore 
much  closer  West  than  East.  The  lower  classes  naturally  take  the 
upper  for  the  model  and  the  responsibility  of  the  latter  until  recent 
years  has  been  heavy.  I  say  of  recent  years,  for  the  question  of 
standard  has  become  so  important,  and  education  has  become  so 
widely  diffused,  that  even  if  the  existing  upper  class  does  not  come 
up  to  former  standard,  the  public,  becoming  critical,  has  means 
of  examining  and  making  use  of  high  examples  of  the  past.  Still, 
on  the  whole,  it  is  the  present  tone  that  rules,  and  the  imitation 
of  the  upper  classes  by  the  lower,  even  in  its  foibles  and  vices,  is  so 
striking  that  it  has  given  much  material  to  writers  on  manners, 
satirists  skilled  in  pointing  out  many  of  the  weak  points  of  our 
system  in  the  sometimes  too  faithful  caricature  thus  afforded. 
However,  our  upper  classes  on  the  whole  are  sound  and  I  think 
this  soundness  is  reflected  in  the  condition  of  the  lower  classes, 
which  too  many  are  ready  to  attribute  to  the  "  natural  goodness  " 
in  man,  although  in  the  primitive  specimens  of  the  genus  we  rarely 
come  across  its  striking  traits  except  in  the  pages  of  Cooper.  Take 
the  standard  of  decency.  There  is,  to  be  sure,  no  harm  done  where 
prurient  thoughts  do  not  enter  in  connection  with  many  actions 
connected  with  our  animal  nature ;  but  no  one  will  dispute  that  the 
standard  that  shoves  those  acts  as  far  as  possible  in  the  back- 
ground is  the  higher  one.  "  Ignorance  is  bliss,"  it  is  true,  but 


NUXC    DIMITIS  317 

there  is  no  particular  folly  in  being  wise  in  this  case.  Both  stand- 
ards may  be  legitimate  in  their  application,  but  that  does  not  neces- 
sarily imply  the  same  plane.  Xow  this  sense  of  decency  is  widely 
diffused  through  the  lower  classes  of  the  West.  It  is  by  no  means 
natural  to  the  western  man,  and  its  spread  can  be  clearly  traced 
as  more  and  more  interest  is  taken  by  the  upper  classes  in  the 
personal  affairs  of  those  beneath  them.  Kindness  to  animals  is 
another  trait,  and  which  found  in  the  West  is  largely  due  to  in- 
fluence from  above,  although  in  this  case  self-interest  largely  helps 
in  the  development  of  this  idea.  The  experience  of  the  western 
man  with  animals,  as  aids  to  his  daily  labour,  has  taught  him  the 
value  of  kind  treatment.  Also  he  is  more  independently  truthful. 
This  he  owes  to  his  individualism  and  his  political  importance. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  community,  not  a  member  of  a  corporate 
body  attached  to  the  community.  His  rights  are  based  on  general 
rights,  and  the  community  will  support  him  against  the  injustice 
of  his  superior,  and  he  does  not  hesitate  to  appeal  to  it  for  such 
support.  I  do  not  see  that  we  have  gained  anything  in  our  western 
world  by  the  adoption  of  the  eastern  principle  in  our  Trusts  and 
Labour  Unions,  and  the  monopoly  of  adjusting  disputes  to  which 
they  aspire.  Arbitration  by  the  community  at  large,  which  often 
has  but  a  remote  interest  in  the  matter  at  issue,  is  far  safer  than 
the  compromises  arranged  between  clashing  interests,  and  is  more 
likely  to  reach  a  just  decision  even  if  it  sweeps  the  balance  entirely 
over  to  one  side.  Compromise  is  sometimes  more  worthy  of  de- 
feat than  acceptance.  Our  western  man's  position  to-day  is  so 
independent  that  practically  he  can  stand  on  his  own  bottom,  and 
it  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  his  "  yea  "  and  his  "  nay,"  according 
to  the  limits  of  his  judgment,  is  quite  as  independent  and  pro- 
nounced as  in  the  upper  classes.  Here  again  he  is  governed  largely 
by  the  best  that  is  accessible  to  him,  and  the  wideness  of  his  range 
has  been  more  than  once  shown  in  the  practical  sympathy  extended 
to  the  struggles  of  other  peoples  and  to  his  forbearance.  More 
than  once  have  political  leaders  wished  to  take  advantage  of 
embarrassing  conditions  to  strike  at  possible  rivals,  and  more  than 


318  SAKURAMBO 

once  has  the  voice  of  the  people  been  heard  with  an  emphatic — 
"  No." 

Again,  I  think  there  is  a  greater  feeling  for  another's  pain  in 
the  West  as  compared  with  the  East.  This  is  of  recent  growth. 
It  is  known  with  what  indifference  our  ancestors  regarded  this 
point  and  looked  with  calm  enjoyment  on  the  most  frightful  tor- 
tures applied  to  their  fellow  creatures.  The  explanation  of  this 
callousness  has  been  often  given  but  bears  repeating.  Namely, 
that  before  the  discovery  of  chloroform  there  was  so  much  suffer- 
ing endured  by  the  innocent  that  one  could  hardly  expect  any  dis- 
play of  sympathy  for  those  found  guilty  of  gross  crimes  against 
the  community.  Perhaps  this  is  the  case  in  the  East  and  in 
Japan.  They  certainly  have  displayed  great  indifference  to  the 
physical  suffering  which  surrounded  them,  but  so  much  was  shared 
by  people  who  had  certainly  not  drawn  it  on  themselves  by  any 
action  that  it  was  taken  as  part  of  the  course  of  nature — "  shigata 
ga  nai."  Perhaps  as  a  kindlier  view  is  taken  with  the  removal 
from  the  old  hard  times  their  sympathy  will  widen.  No  one  can 
criticise  it  or  find  finer  examples  of  it  within  that  limited 
sphere  in  which  the  code  allowed  it  to  exist.  Politeness 
is  largely  a  matter  of  nationality.  Among  the  Latin  nations 
custom  imposes  politeness  much  as  among  the  Japanese,  but 
for  many  years  it  has  been  the  attribute  of  personality  not 
the  application  of  a  code.  We  Anglo-Saxons  are  not  a  polite 
people,  but  I  think  we  are  a  more  trustworthy  people.  When 
a  man  gives  you  his  support  you  have  the  reasoning,  thinking 
man  behind  you.  With  the  Japanese  you  have  the  man  trying 
to  fit  his  formula  into  the  situation,  and  his  formula  is  not  always 
broad  enough  to  cover  it,  or  he  is  not  expert  enough,  or  is  too 
timid  to  apply  it  outside  its  sphere.  I  would  add  also  that  the 
Japanese  is  an  artist  to  his  finger  tips  which  also  the  Anglo-Saxon 
is  not.  In  this  respect  we  can  compare  him  to  the  Italian,  who  in 
so  many  other  features  he  parallels.  As  the  westerner  has  a 
greater  sense  of  his  personal  value  as  a  man  and  his  obligations 
individually  to  other  men,  so  we  can  regret  that  the  Japanese  did 


NUNC    DIMITIS  319 

not  have  this  trait  to  develop  in  his  seclusion.  Probably  the  terms 
are  contradictory.  Such  qualifications  would  rather  have  given 
rise  to  a  great  conquering  race,  which  wrould  not  have  been  content 
with  its  isolation  but  \vould  have  overrun  their  passive  neighbours. 
But  the  peasant  had  no  escape  from  the  iron  heel  of  the  military, 
who  gradually  absorbed  the  monopoly  of  war  and  trod  him  into  the 
dirt,  there  to  remain  and  plough  it  and  interest  himself  in  it  alone. 
Thus  was  the  nation  retired  from  its  active  affairs.  It  is  no 
particular  credit  to  a  country  to  say  it  never  has  changed  its  rulers, 
for  it  simply  implies  that  in  the  course  of  centuries  they  must  have 
stood  a  good  many  bad  ones.  Besides,  in  the  case  of  the  Japanese 
it  is  not  strictly  true.  The  Emperor  was  soon  retired  as  a  figure 
of  practical  politics.  Before  this,  he  is  subject  to  all  the  accidents 
of  political  life,  including  exile  and  assassination.  As  soon  as  he 
is  retired,  if  he  aspires  to  become  anything  more  than  a  figurehead, 
he  is  summarily  removed  by  his  guardians  to  make  place  for  a  more 
pliable  substitute.  The  Shogunate  quickly  fell  into  the  same  harm- 
less position,  and  up  to  the  time  of  lyeyasu  the  real  government  of 
the  country  was  a  gage  of  battle  earnestly  and  persistently  fought 
for  by  the  men  marked,  here  as  elsewhere,  by  certain  personal  quali- 
ties of  leadership.  It  was  not  until  the  time  of  lyeyasu  that  the 
Shogunate  coming  under  the  direction  of  an  elaborate  political 
system  with  checks  and  counter  checks  reached  a  position  of  sta- 
bility that  would  continue  by  its  own  weight  and  without  reference 
to  the  personality  of  the  nominal  head. 

Wrapped  up  in  isolation,  the  Japanese  brought  to  perfection, 
politically  and  artistically,  a  civilization  unique  in  the  world's  his- 
tory. As  to  the  conditions  underlying  this  fair  surface  some- 
thing has  been  said  in  a  previous  chapter,  and  native  writers  more 
than  hint  that  a  cataclysm  was  impending,  which  in  a  sense  would 
have  been  akin  to  the  French  Revolution  in  this  far-off  outpost  of 
the  East.  But  even  if  we  doubt  the  possibility  of  a  popular  move- 
ment in  those  days  it  is  not  hard  to  see  that  the  system  had  reached 
the  ripeness  of  its  rottenness.  As  a  museum  specimen  Japan  was 
undoubtedly  an  object  of  enraptured  admiration  to  the  eyes  of  the 


320  SAKURAMBO 

artist.  Let  us  take  one  example — from  many — of  such  eulogy; 
the  art  rather  than  the  actual  condition  of  the  country  must  be 
in  the  mind  of  the  French  writer  when  he  speaks  of  the  dramatic 
events  which  ended  this  civilization.  "  It  was  the  Americans  who 
in  1853  charged  themselves  with  the  task.  Under  colour  of  a 
treaty  of  amity  and  commerce,  and  disregarding  the  powerless 
protests  of  Japan,  the  Yankee  brutally  thrust  into  this  anachronism 
the  regenerating  stamp  of  modern  ideas,  represented  alas !  by  the 
band  of  unscrupulous  adventurers,  of  eager  and  rapacious  contrac- 
tors. Among  them  glided  the  devious  Chinaman,  the  common 
enemy,  who  became  at  once  the  indispensable  intermediary  between 
European  and  Japanese,  the  steward  or  comprador  with  whom  no 
foreign  business  house  could  dispense." 

Now  this  is  a  serious  indictment,  and,  apart  from  the  fling  at 
brutal  Americans,  it  is  worth  looking  into  to  try  and  see  just  what 
is  the  net  balance  to  be  struck  in  the  exchange  between  East  and 
West.  Native  writers  are  fairly  unanimous  in  saying  that  the 
Japanese  had  reached  a  crisis  in  their  history ;  and  it  is  extremely 
improbable  in  the  face  of  modern  history  that  Japan  would  have 
gone  for  another  century  or  more,  during  which,  after  another 
Age  of  Iron  such  as  followed  Minamato  and  Ashikaga,  the  recov- 
ery and  further  development  of  her  art  would  have  progressed. 
It  is  not  easy  to  see  that  Japan  would  have  profited  in  any  way  if 
the  country  had  been  opened  to  foreign  intercourse  by  the  gentle 
interposition  of  Russians  or  Germans,  English,  or  even  French. 
Just  how  the  Japanese  regard  the  events  of  1853  does  not  exactly 
lie  on  the  surface.  Of  the  event  the  present  generation  undoubt- 
edly are  glad,  although  they  resent  the  implication  of  force  at  the 
bottom  of  Commodore  Perry's  demonstration.  That  this  was 
necessary  is  plain  enough  to  anyone  who  reads  Japanese  expres- 
sion contemporary  with  those  events,  and  the  national  pride  as 
witnessed  in  the  distortion  of  passing  events  finds  free  expression 
in  the  answer  of  the  Daimyo  to  the  Shogun  and  in  that  interesting 
little  book  translated  by  Sir  E.  Satow,  the  Genji  Yume  Mono  go- 
tari.  Now  Commodore  Perry's  motives,  even  if  he  was  prepared 


NUNC    DIMITIS  321 

to  use  force,  were  beyond  suspicion.  They  were  confined  purely  to 
obtaining  a  base  of  supplies,  and  proper  treatment  of  the  American 
whalers  who  were  building  up  a  great  industry  in  the  North 
Pacific,  and  if  possible  negotiating  a  commercial  treaty  with  the 
country.  Any  question  of  territorial  aggression  was  absolutely 
barred  by  the  then  declared  policy  of  the  Republic.  Opened  on 
these  easy  terms  to  the  outside  world  I  think  the  balance  of  ex- 
change has  been  rather  heavily  in  favour  of  Japan.  On  its 
material  side  the  West  gained,  temporarily,  a  market  of  some  mil- 
lions of  people  entirely  unsupplied  with  a  host  of  modern  products 
of  which  the  novelty  alone  would  create  a  demand.  This  was  no 
small  item,  and  perhaps  would  not  have  been  indulged  in  so 
enthusiastically  if  the  commercial  mind  of  that  day  could  have 
foreseen,  not  a  constant  and  humble  consumer  but  the  early  crea- 
tion of  a  formidable  rival  in  the  world's  markets.  The  West  had 
thrown  open  to  it  a  full  inspection  of  an  art  the  influence  of  whose 
beauty  and  completeness  had,  however,  been  discounted  by  ex- 
amples already  known  to  Europe.  Just  how  far  Japanese  Art  has 
influenced  European  Art  is  for  artists  to  say.  It  has  not  deviated 
western  ideals  one  jot  from  their  former  course.  Western  artists 
seem  to  have  seen  no  reason  to  throw  over  the  old  masters  and 
sit  at  the  feet  of  the  Japanese.  They  have  gladly  worked  the 
best  of  the  Japanese  technique  into  their  own  methods  and  such  of 
its  spirit  as  was  of  value  to  them  and  then  evenly  gone  on  their 
own  way.  In  religion  and  philosophy  the  West  could  get  nothing. 
The  western  mind  is  essentially  polemical  and  progressive,  and  in 
these  latter  days  practical.  It  is  the  practical  features  of  Chris- 
tianity that  give  it  such  a  powerful  influence  in  the  West.  The 
dreamy  contemplative  religions  of  the  East  could  never  be  of  use 
to  a  man  who  is  all  action  :  with  their  shadowy  philosophies  spun  out 
of  cobwebs  and  the  human  brain,  not  too  subtle  but  too  unsubstan- 
tial to  be  of  practical  value.  The  metaphysics  of  Europe  driving 
human  search  after  knowledge  into  those  doubtful  regions  beyond 
the  range  of  the  Practical  Reason,  still  strives  to  carry  into  those 
fields  the  methods  and  formulae  gained  by  experience.  It  still 

21 


SAKURAMBO 

strives  to  remain  on  a  practical  basis.  Its  exposition  is  mathe- 
matical even  when  speculative.  In  science  we  obtained  from  the 
Japanese  nothing.  In  politics  we  see  the  doubtful  advantage  of 
organization  carried  to  a  very  great  extreme,  and  which  in  the  face 
of  its  obvious  defects — the  annihilation  of  the  individual — we 
regard  as  an  anachronism  and  to  which  advanced  western  nations 
will  never  return.  In  exchange  Japan  has  taken  the  whole  ma- 
terial civilization  of  the  West.  What  has  cost  us  centuries  of  toil 
and  experiment  is  handed  over  with  a  full  explanation  of  its 
rationale.  And  it  would  probably  do  her  good  if  she  would  widen 
her  range  of  vision  far  enough  to  see  and  understand  the  mental 
processes  lying  behind  all  this  material  civilization,  for  it  is  the 
spirit  that  gives  rise  to  things  not  the  material  object  that  is  of 
value.  We  can  give  all  credit  to  the  man  who  carves  the  beautiful 
netsukes,  polishes  the  most  exquisite  lacquers,  weaves  the  intricate 
embroideries,  covers  temples  and  shrines  with  a  network  of  scenes 
from  nature  and  human  life  wonderful  in  their  spirit  and  fidelity, 
or  paints  them  with  a  breadth  and  subtlety  that  arouses  admira- 
tion; but  we  have  all  this  elsewhere,  and  in  addition  we  have  a 
spirit  that  carries  us  on,  worming  out  of  Nature  her  secrets  and 
enabling  man  to  be  a  little  more  efficient  in  his  struggle  with 
Nature.  It  is  the  efficiency  of  the  nation  that  counts,  and  the  man 
who  can  construct  a  great  battleship  or  the  man  who  discovers 
radium  emanations  is  as  great  a  man  as  a  great  artist.  He  gets 
less  credit  for  his  work  because  it  is  always  becoming  and  never 
crystallizes  into  a  permanent  shape.  And  well  it  is  that  this  is 
the  case,  for  such  crystallization  would  mean  the  death  of  progress. 
Material  and  mental  qualities  seem  singularly  related.  They  react 
on  each  other  favourably  as  long  as  the  former  is  an  active 
progressive  factor.  Halt  material  progress  and  we  seem  to  turn 
in  on  ourselves  thus  hedged  in,  and  eat  our  hearts  out.  It  was 
the'  case  in  Greece  and  Rome.  And,  it  can  be  added,  would  have 
been  the  case  in  Japan  had  it  not  been  for  some  Perry  to  arouse 
her  up  again. 

"  Who  by  taking  thought  can  add  one  cubit  to  his  stature?  " 


NUNC    DIMITIS  323 

The  nature  of  the  land  they  live  in  has  been  accused  of  influencing 
the  stature  of  the  Japanese,  a  mountain  people  being  supposed  to 
diminish  in  height  as  they  expand.  Of  the  latter  quality,  however, 
the  Japanese  have  been  unfairly  deprived  by  Nature.  Too  many 
instances  to  the  contrary  of  this  question  of  height  and  habitat 
will  occur  to  any  one,  I  think.  The  Scandinavian  inhabits  a  land 
that  can  reasonably  be  described  as  mountainous;  the  average 
Swiss  guide  is  the  very  reverse  of  a  dwarf:  and  the  average 
Esquimaux  anything  but  a  giant.  The  latter  at  all  events  is  a 
plain  dweller,  for  he  avoids  the  "  Great  Ice  "  of  the  interior  just  as 
strenuously  as  he  avoids  the  inconvenient  neighbourhood  of  icebergs. 
But  the  nature  of  any  land  undoubtedly  does  react  on  the  spirit  of  the 
people  dwelling  in  it,  and  naturally  the  land  they  live  in  has  more 
or  less  influenced  the  Japanese.  The  stamp  of  environment, 
whether  on  the  broad  plane  of  a  great  continent  writh  its  sweeping 
outlines  in  extenso,  or  the  miniature  presentment  of  a  mountainous 
island  country,  shows  itself  to  the  eyes  of  every  traveller.  They 
are  so  characteristic  that  one  could  hardly  mistake  the  greater  for 
the  less.  Scenery  on  broad  lines  is  impossible  within  the  limits  of 
an  island  territory.  If  the  land  is  flat  plain,  its  outline,  by  the 
slope  in  every  direction  to  the  sea,  betrays  its  nature.  If  it  has 
been  subjected  to  great  upheaval  and  distortion,  within  its  limited 
space,  its  confused  structure,  dissociated  from  any  broad  general 
plan,  will  give  rise  to  suspicion  as  to  its  nature.  There  are  few 
apparent  exceptions  to  this  rule,  and  those  are  susceptible  of  ex- 
planations. As  the  great  includes  the  less,  so  the  continents  will 
generally  be  found  to  contain  all  the  scenery  typical  of  true  island 
scenery.  But  all  our  continents  are  of  vast  age.  Nature  has 
been  carving  away  and  softening  down  their  outlines  for  untold 
centuries.  We  know  that  at  one  time  in  its  history  eastern 
America  was  a  great  island,  and  typical  of  island  scenery  which, 
ho\vever,  has  been  all  ground  down  to  a  softened  type  whose 
rounded  outlines  harmonize  with  the  great  Mississippi  plain.  \Ye 
know  that  England  in  Cretaceous  and  lower  Tertiary  times  was 
part  of  a  great  continent  bordering  on  the  north  the  great  central 


324  SAKURAMBO 

Mediterranean  Sea,  which  then  extended  an  arm  up  over  what  is 
now  eastern  Russia  to  the  Arctic  Ocean.  It  was  a  part  of  such 
continent  and  not  merely  connected  with  it,  and  age  and  weathering 
have  brought  it  into  harmony  with  the  softer  outlines  of  the  great 
continental  plains  bordering  on  the  northwestern  sea.  The  only 
island  which  could  be  classed  as  an  exception — Australia — is  of 
such  vast  extent  as  to  be  a  continent  in  itself,  and  in  age  rivals 
the  other  continents. 

Japan  is  a  true  island.  It  has  almost  certainly  been  at  one 
time  connected  with  Asia,  but  the  connection  has  been  a  bridge. 
It  remains  to  be  shown  whether  it  ever  was  an  integral  part  of 
the  continent.  The  type  of  scenery  found,  therefore,  is  an  island 
scenery,  and  this  has  been  but  little  softened  by  time.  Its  outlines 
are  ragged  and  abrupt.  Lying  on  one  of  the  earth's  great  lines  of 
adjustment,  it  has  been  subject  to  great  distortion.  The  result  has 
been  one  of  the  most  picturesque  countries  in  the  world.  The 
sharp  serrated  outlines  of  the  mountain  ridges,  clothed  with  green 
from  top  to  bottom,  the  archipelago  nature  of  the  main  island 
itself  giving  entrance  to  the  sea  far  within  its  proper  limits,  the 
abundant  rainfall  descending  in  countless  cascades  and  rushing 
mountain  streams,  which  have  but  a  short  dash  to  make  before  they 
again  return  their  water  to  the  ocean,  the  numbers  of  little  lakes 
confined  within  the  tangle  of  the  central  mountain  mass,  the  tor- 
tuous mountain  valleys  opening  up  new  vistas  every  few  miles,  the 
abrupt  nature  of  the  coast,  due  to  the  fact  that  the  islands  really 
consist  of  a  main  mountain  range  occupying  practically  the  whole 
of  the  available  ground  and  leaving  but  a  narrow  space  to  form  the 
shore,  at  times  even  cutting  off  this  and  rising  abruptly  from  the 
ocean  itself;  all  these  characteristics  imply  the  very'  word 
"  beauty,"  which  always  attaches  to  a  judicious  intermingling  of 
water  and  land  into  a  landscape.  And  yet  withal  there  is  some- 
thing which  reduces  the  scale  of  everything.  Fuji  loses  nothing 
in  beauty  by  the  regularity  of  its  cone.  It  gains  immensely  by  it. 
It  is  curious  how  completely  such  a  great  mountain  enters  into  the 
miniature  of  "  Things  Japanese."  It  harmonizes  completely  with 


NUXC    DIMITIS  325 

all  that  fondness  for  the  specific  which  the  Japanese  displays.  And 
man's  specific  must  naturally  confine  itself  to  detail.  But  it  loses 
in  grandeur,  and  in  that  respect,  I  think,  most  people  will  class  it 
below  a  cone  like  Mount  Tacoma,  with  its  beetling  cliffs  and  peren- 
nial snow-fields  and  glaciers,  or  such  a  great  pyramid  as  the 
Matterhorn,  standing  savagely  isolated  among  the  surrounding 
peaks,  or  the  beautiful  spire  of  the  Silberhorn,  or  the  rounded 
domes  of  Mont  Blanc,  Jungfrau,  or  Monte  Rosa.  The  great 
range  in  Hida  and  Etchu  is  of  a  rougher  type  and  loses  something 
of  its  effect  as  the  peaks  rise  or  seem  to  rise  from  a  plateau  country. 
Prevailing  winds,  together  with  the  seasonal  distribution  of  the 
rainfall  and  evaporation,  place  the  snow-line  too  high  to  make 
these  peaks  snow-capped  the  year  round. 

It  is,  however,  as  man  has  modified  the  scenery  that  the 
traveller  will  find  the  greatest  interest.  For  an  old  inhabited  coun- 
try such  as  Japan  this  has  been  singularly  incomplete.  When  the 
land  is  available  for  agricultural  purposes  every  inch  of  it  has  been 
used,  and  the  waste  places  bloom  writh  all  that  beauty  of  cultivation 
by  which  man,  giving  trimness  and  neatness,  can  add  so  much  to 
scenery.  In  general  terms,  however,  there  is  none  of  that  exquisite 
finish  that  is  found  in  most  European  countries.  Away  from  the 
agriculturally  available,  the  land  is  unkempt.  There  is  not  that 
beautiful  park-like  appearance  which  is  so  characteristic  of  Eng- 
land. Englishmen  boast,  and  justly  I  think,  of  this  feature  of 
their  country.  It  is  found  elsewhere  in  districts  or  on  some  great 
estate,  but  is  nowhere  so  universal  as  to  turn  almost  the  whole 
country  under  man's  hand.  This  is  not  found  in  Japan,  and  their 
mountain  and  lake  scenery  suffers  from  it.  We  can  understand 
"  the  forest  primeval  "  in  vast  America,  but  one  can  hardly  get 
into  the  spirit  of  the  forest  primeval  when  he  has  a  score  of  villages 
and  hamlets  within  the  sound  of  a  gunshot,  or  when  he  rises  from 
his  absorbed  contemplation  to  find  a  half  a  dozen  natives  con- 
sciously turning  their  gaze  everywhere  but  at  him,  although  he  has 
been  the  object  of  their  interested  and  concentrated  attention  for 
perhaps  the  last  quarter  of  an  hour.  The  unexpected  presence  of 


SAKURAMBO 

the  native  is  sometimes  as  startling  as  must  have  been  Roderick 
Dim's  retainers  to  Fitz-James.  They  literally  spring  out  of  the 
ground.  The  lakes  usually  visited  by  foreigners,  Hakone,  Chii- 
zenji,  and  Biwa,  can  certainly  be  easily  matched  by  the  score  in 
America.  Hakone  is  only  redeemed  by  the  cone  of  Fuji,  for  the 
lake  itself,  with  its  bare  grassy  slopes,  can  lay  claim  to  no  great 
beauty.  A  lake  as  beautiful  as  Lake  George,  or  many  of  the 
Adirondacks  or  Maine  lakes,  I  have  not  seen.  Most  Englishmen 
and  Scotchmen,  I  think,  will  be  loath  to  admit  any  superiority  in 
this  feature  of  Japanese  scenery.  In  fact,  most  of  the  native 
standard  is  due  to  limited  range,  and  judging  by  it,  foreigners  are 
likely  to  be  grievously  disappointed  when  they  visit  the  show  places 
of  Japan.  Matsushima  and  the  Inland  Sea  are  very  beautiful,  but 
they  are  types  to  be  found  everywhere  in  the  world,  and  the 
exaggeration  of  the  native  causes  a  sense  of  disappointment  that 
is  likely  to  swing  the  balance  over  too  far  into  an  unjust  sense 
of  depreciation. 

It  can  well  be  asked  then  what  is  the  immense  attraction  which 
undeniably  lies  in  this  eastern  race — an  attraction  that  makes 
them  the  goal  of  so  many  seekers  after  the  novel  and  the  curious  ? 
Japan  has  been  called  the  "  Land  of  the  Lotus,"  but  I  think  that 
the  curiosity  that  has  been  roused  in  the  western  world  concerning 
the  Japanese  has  little  to  do  with  Lotus-eaters.  It  is  the  Japanese 
people,  who,  in  their  lives  and  thoughts  past  and  present,  afford 
so  much  food  for  study,  not  to  Lotus-eaters  but  to  men  who  have 
found  here  a  mine  of  wealth  worth  the  devotion  of  a  lifetime  to 
get  at  its  inward  spirit;  and  who,  in  their  attractive  presentation 
of  their  discoveries,  have  led  so  many  tourists  to  believe  that  what 
has  taken  the  discoverer  years  of  minute  observation  to  strip  from 
its  coverings  lies  open  and  patent  to  the  sight.  The  result  is  that 
the  average  casual  traveller  passing  from  point  to  point  has,  after 
all,  to  fall  back  on  the  contents  of  the  curio-shops  and  bazaars,  and 
the  comfort  of  travel  and  climate  as  compared  with  the  benighted 
condition  of  India  or  the  limited  range  of  China.  In  Japan  at 
least  one  finds  creature  comforts,  and  can  wander  through  the 


NUNC    DIMITIS 

country  without  those  special  preparations  which  would  imply  an 
expedition  of  the  old  days  to  the  heart  of  Africa.  The  attraction 
to  others,  however,  is  the  Japanese  people,  and,  as  I  have  said 
before,  the  upper  classes  of  to-day  can  here  be  altogether  elimi- 
nated. Forty  years  ago  as  an  anachronism — a  living  picture  of 
our  own  material  past — perhaps  they  were  the  chief  interest.  To- 
day, they  are  simply  the  polished  conventionalized  men  of  the  world, 
who  differ  very  little  east  and  west  of  the  iSoth  meridian.  The 
common  people,  however,  maintain  much  of  their  old  interest  in 
primitive  traits.  The  grudging  extension  of  political  privileges 
to  them  has  still  limited  their  ideas  to  the  immediate  affairs  of 
their  daily  life,  a  range  which  in  every  country  changes  very 
slowly  and  only  under  the  pressure  of  great  material  progress. 
Great  discoveries  affecting  daily  life  have  an  immense  influence  on 
the  mass  of  the  people,  but  human  labour  is  so  cheap  in  Japan 
that  steam  and  electricity  have  had  far  less  application  as  yet  in 
the  form  of  labour-saving  machinery  than  would  be  supposed.  In 
their  daily  occupations  these  uses  made  of  natural  forces  have 
hardly  influenced  the  common  people,  who  are  still  handicraftsmen, 
still  artisans.  But  after  all  it  is  this  unchangingness  of  thought 
that  makes  the  common  people  of  Japan  interesting  to-day  and 
from  which  we  can  draw  some  very  useful  lessons. 

It  is  very  difficult  to  picture  just  how  our  ancestors  lived, 
and  still  more  difficult  to  picture  just  how  they  thought.  In  fact, 
we  are  farther  removed  from  them  in  the  latter  than  in  the  former. 
The  description  of  material  things  is  a  matter  of  words,  and  if 
these  change  in  meaning  the  change  is  usually  so  gradual  as  to 
admit  of  detection.  In  this  way  we  probably  can  figure  fairly  well 
the  material  environment  of  our  ancestors,  but  when  it  comes  to 
looking  at  that  environment  with  his  eyes  language  gives  us  less 
assistance.  Words  have  done  more  than  change  their  meaning. 
They  have  changed  the  spirit  of  that  meaning,  that  subtle  soul  of 
a  word  that  is  so  dependent  on  our  political  and  social  surround- 
ings. If  we  were  planted  down  to-day  in  the  home  of  our  ancestor 
of  a  thousand  years  ago  I  am  afraid  we  would  have  a  very  hard 


328  SAKURAMBO 

row  to  hoe.  With  our  individualism,  boldly  expressed  as  it  is  in 
these  modern  days,  we  would  soon  most  roughly  ride  counter  to  the 
old  gentleman's  ideas,  and  fairly  before  the  novelty  of  our  general 
"  make-up  "  had  a  chance  to  appeal  to  him,  the  insult  to  his  headship 
would  make  itself  felt,  and  we  would  have  a  taste  of  the  patria 
potestas  and  the  dungeon  cell,  while  he  decided  in  his  mind  whether 
it  were  better  to  choke  us  out  of  the  world,  or  shove  us  off  on 
some  of  his  acquaintance  by  the  simple  medium,  of  exchange  and 
barter,  to  the  profit  of  his  purse  and  the  perhaps  entanglement  of 
the  purchaser.  It  is  our  individualism  that  has  made  the  differ- 
ence to  the  western  world.  For  that  reason  our  formulae  have 
been  cast  on  much  broader  and  simpler  lines,  to  apply  to  a  much 
wider  range  of  subjects,  and  the  minutiae  must  be  left  largely  to  the 
individual  subject.  If  he  cannot  take  care  of  himself,  so  much  the 
worse  for  him.  The  State  will  only  engage  to  look  after  him 
before  the  period  known  as  the  years  of  discretion.  This  has  been 
steadily  at  work  modifying  our  system  for  centuries.  At  times 
it  has  made  great  advances  at  a  bound,  as  in  1789  and  again  in 
1848,  but  it  has  never  been  absent.  This  is  very  much  the  reverse 
of  the  Japanese,  who  up  to  1870  was  living  under  the  same  system, 
social  and  mental,  as  his  forefathers.  The  decline  of  the  imperial 
power,  followed  by  the  civil  wars,  had  given  rise  to  a  military  caste 
which  soon  became  limited  to  its  professional  members.  From 
that  date  the  people  were  restricted  to  their  respective  spheres,  and 
a  minute  code  was  laid  down  as  to  their  conduct.  This  code,  as 
far  as  it  showed  any  tendency  to  change,  was  towards  making  it 
still  -more  stringent. 

Forty  years  could  hardly  make  a  very  wide  impression 
on  it,  especially  in  country  districts  removed  from  the  life 
of  the  outer  world.  The  existing  relations  of  family  life  and 
of  village  life,  between  employer  and  employed,  between  the 
farmer  and  his  peasant  kind,  can  be  carried  back  to  former  times 
or  forward  from  former  times.  It  will  be  sufficient  to  recall  the 
relation  of  the  servant  in  a  family.  Domestic  servants  are  rated 
at  wages  of  two  yen  (one  dollar)  a  month.  This,  of  course,  means 


NUNC    DIMITIS  329 

that  the  relation  of  the  servant  in  the  household  is  a  very  different 
one  than  with  us.  They  are  clothed  and  fed  and  educated  and 
prepared  for  their  future  independent  life  much  as  if  they  were 
connected  with  the  family.  Clerks  go  into  the  establishment  of 
their  masters  on  the  same  severe  terms.  Their  food  is  plain,  their 
apprenticeship  is  long,  and  the  wages  nil,  and  they  prefer  it  to  the 
harsher  and  (to  them)  unpleasant  service  of  a  foreigner.  Their 
relation  to  the  master  is  personal,  they  learn  the  business,  and 
when  the  service  is  completed  they  are  started  out  in  business  by 
him  and  with  an  established  connection,  so  to  speak.  So  it  goes 
through  the  many  grades  of  life.  And  as  the  relations  are  the 
same  so  must  the  little  tricks  of  method,  even  of  physical  habits, 
be  the  same,  so  unchanging  is  the  code  and  so  unchanging  is  the 
habit  of  thought  it  must  have  inculcated.  There  are  no  great 
material  changes  here  to  be  worked  into  it  and  to  disturb  it.  No 
discovery  of  steam  or  electric  power  to  call  into  exercise  new 
faculties  of  the  brain.  Everything  moves  on  in  the  same  even 
ruts,  which  take  a  smoother  and  smoother  polish  with  the  decades 
and  tens  of  decades.  This,  it  seems  to  me,  is  the  interesting  feature 
of  "  life  Japanese."  We  are  watching  the  man  of  the  past  at  work. 
It  can  only  be  seen  now  in  small  ways,  and  great  was  the  privilege 
of  those  who  saw  it  in  its  original  untouched  condition. 

As  to  how  far  back  we  can  carry  this  life  into  the  past  of  other 
nations  is  a  difficult  question,  but  much  of  the  life  of  the  common 
people  of  India  is  singularly  unchanging.  Certainly  with  a  knowl- 
edge of  it  we  can  read  better  the  old  description  of  dead  and  gone 
nations  of  the  past.  We  translate  too  much  our  present  ideas  into 
gaudy  descriptions  of  the  great  festivals  of  the  Mesopotamian 
cities.  Life  in  Babylon  was  probably  not  so  different  from  life  in 
India  to-day,  as  far  as  the  common  people  went.  The  glitter  of 
gold  and  silken  banners,  the  hosts  of  richly  clad  priests  in  pro- 
cession, the  troupes  of  dancers,  can  be  softened  down  to  the  tones  of 
to-day,  where  there  is  more  brass  than  gold,  the  women  far  from 
the  ravishing  dream  of  the  poets,  and  a  good  deal  of  hemp  or  the 
cotton  plant  is  woven  into  the  silk.  The  priests  are  still  there,  but 


330  SAKURAMBO 

their  pounces  have  been  clipped,  their  mysteries  have  been  stripped 
from  them ;  and  there  also  more  brass  than  gold  has  been  found. 
Time  throws  much  of  a  glamour  over  everything,  and  he  has  not 
hesitated  to  so  adorn  the  physical  proportions  of  our  ancestors. 
The  fierce  warrior  in  armour  seems  a  terrible  spectacle,  but  it  is 
simply  his  unfamiliarity  to  our  eyes,  his  remoteness,  as  of  some 
strange  monster  of  Mesozoic  times.  Put  a  man  of  our  present 
generation — one  of  our  own  acquaintance — into  a  suit  of  armour 
and  he  is  far  from  terrible.  In  fact,  he  probably  could  not  get  into 
it,  for  the  improvement  of  physical  surroundings  is  said  to  have 
increased  the  proportions  of  the  race.  Sir  Launcelot  might  possi- 
bly be  even  classed  as  a  "  runt  "  in  these  days,  so  far  distant  is  the 
seventh  century.  And  it  is  to  be  suspected  that  these  terrible  heroes 
of  Japanese  times  are  not  so  unlike  our  mild-mannered  neighbours 
surrounding  us.  Unfortunately  for  man,  however,  we  cannot  con- 
firm our  suspicion  that  this  applies  also  to  more  than  physical 
stature. 

How  hard  we  labour  and  strive  to  make  a  name  for  our- 
selves. We  often  see  the  pompous  statement  of  a  man  that  he 
"  writ  his  name  large  across  the  page  of  history."  One  can  well 
ask,  In  what  way?  "Who  cares  to  subsist  like  Hippocrates' 
patients,  or  Achilles'  horses  in  Homer,  under  naked  nominations, 
without  deserts  and  noble  acts,  which  are  the  balsam  of  our  mem- 
ories, the  entelechia  and  soul  of  our  subsistences  ?  But  the  iniquity 
of  oblivion  blindly  scattereth  her  poppy,  and  deals  with  the  memory 
of  men  without  distinction  to  merit  of  perpetuity.  Who  can  but 
pity  the  founder  of  the  pyramids?  Herostratus  lives,  that  burnt 
the  temple  of  Diana;  he  is  almost  lost  that  built  it.  Time  hath 
spared  the  epitaph  of  Adrian's  horse,  confounded  that  of  himself. 
In  vain  we  can  compute  our  felicities  by  the  advantage  of  our  good 
names,  since  bad  have  equal  durations,  and  Thersites  is  likely  to 
live  as  long  as  Agamemnon."  Three  thousand  years  and  more 
before  Christ,  Babylon  was  a  great  city.  Their  life  and  thought 
is  before  us,  not  in  many  ways  unlike  our  own.  They  bought  and 
sold,  worked  and  played,  quarrelled,  and  even  went  to  law.  Their 


NUNC    DIMITIS  331 

contracts  and  deeds  of  conveyance  are  before  our  eyes  in  the 
British  Museum.  Mr.  A  covenants  and  agrees  to  sell  to  Mr. 
B  the  lot  of  ground  with  messuage  built  thereon  at  the  corner  of 
Nebuchadnezzar  Avenue  and  Bel  Street  for  and  by  the  considera- 
tion of  so  much  weight  of  silver  duly  paid  (and  weighed)  and 
delivered,  etc.,  etc.,  with  a  description  of  the  property  and  the 
signatures  of  the  subscribing  witnesses.  The  said  Nebuchadnez- 
zar was,  as  we  know,  a  very  great  king;  the  tale  of  his  being 
turned  out  to  grass  was  a  malicious  invention  of  a  conquered  and 
maltreated  people  who  had  no  other  means  of  blackening  the  char- 
acter of  their  oppressor.  His  health  was  of  the  greatest  im- 
portance, and  yet  we  do  not  know  even  the  name  of  his  physician, 
let  alone  the  qualifications  which  gained  him  his  eminent  position. 
The  cares  and  complexities  of  his  great  empire  called  for  great 
legal  learning  in  its  administration,  and  yet  the  name  is  lost  of  the 
leader  of  the  bar  of  that  day.  Of  his  cook,  Nabuzardan,  we  know 
at  least  the  name,  if  so  great  an  authority  on  the  kitchen  as  Friar 
John  of  the  Funnels  is  to  be  relied  on. 

If  we  ask  what  is  the  value  of  human  fame,  can  we  not  go  a 
step  farther  and  ask  what  is  the  value  of  the  fame  of  nations? 
These  nations  of  the  past  are  so  dead  and  gone,  so  out  of  all  real 
touch  with  the  nations  of  modern  times,  that  for  any  active  sym- 
pathy they  might  have  been  located  in  Mars.  The  only  connec- 
tion we  have  with  them  is  in  a  faint  reflex  of  customs  dimmed  by 
time  but  still  comprehensible  to  us,  or  into  which  we  read  our  own 
meaning  with  but  little  thought  as  to  the  meaning  they  read  into 
them.  We  adopt  only  the  formula ;  the  living  interest  of  the  past 
has  died  out  of  them.  The  man  in  Babylon  five  thousand  years 
ago  was  born,  lived,  married,  died,  went  through  all  the  alternation 
of  joy  and  despair  that  we  go  through  to-day.  He  is  flesh  of  our 
flesh  and  bone  of  our  bone,  and  yet  we  have  no  real  sympathy  for 
him.  Their  woes  are  our  woes  and  yet  not  our  woes;  they  are 
only  museum  specimens,  duly  labelled,  curious  to  the  sight  and 
understanding.  So  are  the  huge  winged  monsters,  half  men, 
half  lion  or  bull  that  this  ancestor  of  ours  evolved  out  of  his  con- 


332  SAKURAMBO 

sciousness  of  things.  I  think  in  some  ways  these  nations  have  a 
great  advantage  over  us.  They  at  least,  after  enjoying  their 
period  on  earth,  have  handed  down  their  record  to  the  future,  and 
singularly  complete  are  the  remains  they  have  left  to  us.  They 
seemed  instinctively  to  turn  to  the  most  durable  material  on  which 
to  grave  their  records — baked  clay  and  the  hard  granite  or  diorite. 
Barring  man's  destructive  hand,  it  will  take  long  ages  for  Nature 
to  wipe  the  page  clean  of  the  record  the  Babylonian  and  Assyrian 
and  Egyptian  have  placed  for  future  men  to  read.  Parchment 
stands  a  small  show  in  the  contest  of  durability  against  brass  and 
stone.  .The  modern  world  has  gone  a  double  length.  We  have 
abandoned  entirely  oral  tradition.  We  purposely  throw  as  little 
strain  on  the  memory  as  possible,  leaving  much  to  written  notes 
taken  at  the  time  and  kept  handy  for  reference.  We  have  ostenta- 
tiously left  off  training  the  memory  to  devote  our  whole  time  to 
developing  the  understanding.  Now  there  is  a  distinct  disadvan- 
tage in  this,  inasmuch  as  in  the  early  years  during  which  the 
memory  gets  its  training,  our  present  system  and  memory  discipline 
can  go  hand  in  hand.  There  is  every  reason  to  teach  the  child 
early  to  think,  but  there  is  no  necessity  of  doing  so  memorandum  in 
hand.  In  the  old  days  of  our  fathers,  their  misdeeds  in  school 
were  penalized  by  the  imposition  of  hundreds  of  lines  of  verse  or 
prose  to  be  learned  by  heart,  and  excellent  discipline  it  was,  as  the 
ease  and  accuracy  of  quotation  of  which  they  were  masters  shows 
us  in  their  public  debates.  There  are  many  little  incidents  that 
at  the  time  hardly  seem  worthy  of  note,  and  which  later  circum- 
stances make  most  interesting  or  valuable  to  succeeding  genera- 
tions. Our  memories  are  getting  shorter  and  shorter,  and  if  a 
man  sixty  years  hence  had  to  give  even  the  general  details  to  fill 
in  some  history  of  to-day,  we  should  much  less  trust  to  his  account 
than,  under  similar  circumstances,  to  that  of  the  man  who  ran 
through  the  whole  gamut  of  classical  literature  with  ease  and 
accuracy. 

We  are,  however,  not  satisfied  to  stop  at  this  point.     In  the 
rare  cases  in  which  we  resort  to  stone  to  perpetuate  our  memories, 


NL'NC    DIMITIS  333 

what  is  sought  ?  The  softest  and  easiest  to  work.  How  long  is  a 
modern  graveyard  to  last  in  any  shape  of  intelligibility?  The 
old  slate  tablets  of  our  fathers  are  far  the  more  durable,  but  the 
present  day  runs  to  marble  and  sandstone,  and  if  they  do  take 
granite  it  must  be  softer  qualities  which  take — and  lose — a  high 
polish  easily  and  disintegrate  rapidly.  In  the  graveyards'  of  to-day 
it  is  not  the  graves  of  a  hundred  years  ago  that  have  suffered. 
It  is  those  of  thirty  and  forty  years  ago,  whose  inscriptions  are 
hardly  legible.  To  stone  or  brass,  however,  we  do  not  often  resort. 
Our  mainstay  is  paper,  and  on  that  we  have  built  the  whole  struc- 
ture of  our  history  as  the  world  is  to  know  us  in  the  future.  There 
is  much  in  the  world  of  the  past  that  is  useful  to  know,  even  if  we 
make  but  little  or  no  practical  application  of  it.  It  at  least  teaches 
us  the  important  fact  how  things  came  to  pass.  It  is  only  the  im- 
mediately useful  that  survives  by  use.  Doubtless  the  future  gen- 
erations can  get  along  quite  as  well  without  knowing  anything  more 
about  us  than  they  have  taken  from  us  as  at  first  hand,  and  we 
are  adopting  admirable  methods  to  see  that  they  will  not  be  troubled 
with  details.  As  it  is,  we  have  the  merest  fragments  of  the  world's 
literature  and  history.  If  it  had  not  been  for  the  material  used, 
the  existence  of  the  ancient  world  would  be  as  obscure  to  us  to-day 
as  that  of  the  nations  who  built  those  mysterious  ruins  in  Central 
America  and  in  Central  Africa.  They  would  only  exist  as  doubt- 
ful traditions  to  be  set  down  as  another  mythlike  Atlantis.  In  the 
twenty-five  hundred  years  that  have  elapsed  since  Homer's  time, 
the  bulk  of  a  great  literature  has  literally  disappeared.  It  has  been 
fourteen  hundred  years  since  the  fall  of  the  Roman  Empire,  and 
we  have  gone  far  enough  to  know  that  of  its  literature  more  has 
been  lost  than  preserved.  It  has  been  fifteen  hundred  years  since 
the  Romans  left  Britain.  Of  the  first  thousand  years  only  frag- 
ments of  its  literature  remain.  It  is  but  three  hundred  years  since 
Shakespeare's  time,  during  which  Ben  Jonson,  Massinger,  Web- 
ster, Beaumont  and  Fletcher,  Ford,  and  Dekker,  have  become  the 
gradually  diminishing  property  of  a  few  literary  men,  only  to 
interest  the  general  public  in  the  form  of  apt  quotation ;  and  there 


334  SAKURAMBO 

is  no  guarantee  that  three  hundred  years  more  will  not  put  Shakes- 
peare in  the  same  position.  To-day  he  is  more  quoted  than  read, 
and  the  reading  and  quotation  is  becoming  more  and  more  centred 
on  a  few  plays.  In  other  words,  the  whole  life  of  the  man  is 
getting  out  of  touch  with  us,  and  we  are  reading  the  fortunately 
wide  range  of  his  views  into  our  own  environment. 

Our  insignificance  as  men,  however,  is  accentuated,  not  so 
much  by  time  as  by  thought  and  civilization ;  the  lack  of  symmetry 
and  sympathy  and  connection.  If  we  have  no  sympathy  with  the 
distant  past,  we  have  almost  as  little  with  peoples  of  the  present 
removed  from  us  in  thought  and  habits.  We  show  but  a  languid 
interest  in  the  misfortunes  of  such  peoples.  We  read  of  frightful 
slaughters  in  Armenia,  of  famine  in  India,  of  the  disappearance 
of  a  whole  population  into  the  dust  of  its  neighbouring  volcano. 
It  is  a  newspaper  item  to  us.  A  man  slips  his  dollar  into  the  glass 
bowl  exposed  on  the  street  for  the  use  and  benefit  of  the  sufferers, 
and  goes  on  his  way  with  far  less  real  thought  about  it  than  if 
the  electric  car  had  run  over  and  mangled  the  pet  house  dog.  It 
is  not  our  fault.  We  cannot  take  interest  too  far  from  our  imme- 
diate surroundings.  We  take  an  interest  in  the  slaughter  that 
great  armies  wreak  on  each  other,  for  that  is  something  that  may 
come  to  ourselves  any  day,  and  we  cry  out  for  some  method  of  do- 
ing away  with  such  methods  of  settling  disputes,  but  we  have  no  fear 
of  Turks  or  Cossacks  or  Kurds,  falling  on  us  from  the  skies  and 
filling  the  streets  and  wells  with  the  dead  and  dying.  Take  some 
of  the  sketches  of  that  kaleidoscope  of  nations  found  in  d'Amici's 
"  Constantinople."  Look  at  the  worn,  thoughtful  faces  of  the  old 
men  there  depicted.  Those  men  are  living  their  lives  with  as  little 
thought  of  us  as  we  of  them.  We  do  not  know  the  kindly  old 
face  in  front  of  us.  Just  as  well  we  do  not,  for  in  thought  there 
is  probably  no  sympathy  between  us.  We  wish  him  well,  and  yet 
for  all  real  meaning  he  might  be  as  immaterial  as  the  printed  paper 
or  as  an  inhabitant  of  another  world.  And  so  it  has  gone  on  not 
only  for  the  present  but  in  the  past  for  untold  generations.  These 
men  of  ages  back  have  existed,  but  to-day,  individually,  they  have 


NUNC    DIMITIS  335 

barely  the  reality  of  a  dream.  And  as  we  look  at  the  waste  places 
of  the  earth  which  they  made  to  bloom  and  flower  we  can  well 
believe  them  a  dream.  Nature  is  far  more  powerful  than  we  are, 
and  drives  us  hither  and  thither  over  the  face  of  the  globe.  In 
the  face  of  her  periods  it  really  seems  as  if  the  question  as  to  who 
shall  carry  out  the  scheme  of  evolution,  white  man  or  yellow  man, 
was  a  very  trifling  one  to  her.  We  are  newcomers,  to  play  our 
part  and  disappear  as  others  have  done  before  us  and  elsewhere  in 
the  Cosmos. 

Perhaps  then  to  us  men  the  real  problem  is  the  race,  and  that 
it  is  alone  the  race  that  counts  and  to  which  we  are  to  direct  our 
efforts.  The  question  is — how  to  control  the  individual  and  yet 
develop  his  powers.  Rules  and  regulations  have  their  own  great 
defect.  Man  is  complex,  and  the  object  is  that  his  development 
should  be  harmonious.  West  answers  the  question  by  giving  him  as 
much  freedom  as  possible  and  takes  the  risks  of  abnormalities. 
East  fits  the  man  to  a  preconceived  mould  and  forcibly  starves  her 
abnormalities  out  of  existence.  In  both  cases  are  still  applied  the 
old  natural  rules  inherited  from  the  past,  but  the  West  recognizes 
the  possibility  of  progress  and  fosters  genius  which  necessarily 
is  abnormal.  The  East  takes  the  past  as  the  fixed  standard  and 
allows  nothing  to  flourish  outside  of  it.  But  even  in  the  West  we 
are  restrained.  Man  is  a  herd,  and  just  as  animals  suppress  the 
lame  and  the  freak,  so  all  wanderers  from  the  human  herd  must 
pay  for  their  idiosyncrasies.  We  want  neither  angels  nor  devils. 
Departures  from  the  norm  are  met  with  hostility,  and  must  make 
their  way  good'  in  the  face  of  such  hostility,  not  against  the  inquir- 
ing spirit.  It  is  the  West  only  that  to  some  extent  the  inquiring 
spirit  has  been  able  to  make  its  voice  heard,  demanding  that  the 
innovation  at  least  be  given  a  hearing.  More  it  cannot  do.  In 
the  East  up  to  very  recent  times  it  has  been  unknown.  After  all, 
a  live  dog  is  better  than  a  dead  lion,  and  the  capacity  of  a  people 
to  live  is  far  more  to  them  than  what  nations  may  say  of  them  when 
their  civilization  has  gone  to  dust.  People  can  judge  of  the 
capability  of  the  past,  the  future  is  groping  in  the  dark  and  new 


336  SAKURAMBO 

steps  taken  rashly  may  bring  disaster.  It  is  the  limitation  of  his 
experience,  the  tacit  admittance  of  the  limitation  of  his  capabilities, 
that'  makes  man  conservative.  Genius  is  rarely  happy.  Perhaps 
the  more  we  carry  this  conservatism  into  our  individualism  the 
happier  we  are.  I  do  not  mean  that  subserviency  to  formula  that 
is  the  prevalent  tone  of  the  East,  but  that  wise  balance  due  to  wider 
horizon  which  is  the  heritage  of  our  western  world.  Well  can 
we  bear  in  mind  those  wise  words  of  Herr  Teufelsdrockh,  "  So 
true  is  it,  that  the  Fraction  of  Life  can  be  increased  in  value  not 
so  much  by  increasing  your  Numerator  as  by  lessening  your  De- 
nominator. Nay,  unless  my  Algebra  deceive  me,  Unity  itself 
divided  by  Zero  will  give  Infinity.  Make  thy  claim  of  wages  a 
zero  then ;  thou  hadst  the  world  under  thy  feet.  Well  did  the 
Wisest  of  our  time  write:  'It  is  only  with  Renunciation  (Ent- 
sagen)  that  Life,  properly  speaking,  can  be  said  to  begin.'  ' 

It  is  the  stirring  events  of  the  past — so  much  the  all,  the 
finality  to  the  men  of  that  day,  and  such  Dead  Sea  fruit  to  us  to- 
day— that  makes  us  doubt  the  real  importance  of  our  human  affairs 
to  anything  but  ourselves.  We  have  before  our  eyes  the  insect 
that  seeks  his  mate,  exhausts  himself,  and  dies;  and  it  is,  too, 
probable  that  the  importance  of  humanity  is  a  fiction  of  our  own 
brain.  And,  indeed,  when  we  look  on  the  different  races  of  men, 
our  capacities  are  so  exactly  akin  to  the  other  manifestations  of 
Nature  that  in  very  shame  we  hide  our  heads  from  such  obvious 
facts,  and  for  ages  have  cackled  about  the  divinityship  lodged  in 
our  skulls.  Modern  science  has  broken  down  some  of  this  feeling. 
Comparative  anatomy  attaches  more  importance  to  locality  and 
convolutions  of  different  parts  of  our  brain  as  compared  with  the 
other  animals  below  us  in  the  scale,  and  we  are  beginning  to 
suspect  that  after  all  we  may  be  only  the  as  yet  ripest  product  of 
some  vast  scheme, — not  separate  and  apart  from  it,  not  a  favoured 
child  for  whose  enjoyment  all  the  rest  has  been  provided.  It 
has  been  hard  for  us  to  abandon  our  theory  of  "  the  final  product." 
Through  all  the  pains  and  penalties  of  our  lives,  with  all  the  suffer- 
ing of  Nature  going  on  under  our  eyes,  we  have  still  steadily  pur- 


NUXC    DIMITIS  337 

sued  this  ignis  fatnus — that  the  world  is  properly  a  scene  for  enjoy- 
ment, not  for  strife.  If  it  were  not  pitiable  it  would  be  laughable 
to  see  how  we  grasp  at  the  merest  shadows  to  bolster  up  our 
despairing  hopes.  To  us  it  is,  or  we  pretend  it  is,  all  fact.  Youth 
grasps  the  shadow  of  life  as  real,  old  age  the  shadow  of  death  as 
real,  but  there  is  little  difference  between  the  two  stages  except 
in  so  far  as  Nature  sends  the  blood  bounding  through  the  arteries 
in  the  case  of  the  one  and  chills  the  blood  of  the  other.  Old  age ! 
The  very  term  is  relative.  The  bodily  frame  of  one  man  as 
measured  by  our  terms  of  years  may  not  have  reached  maturity, 
but  in  Nature's  eyes  he  has  long  passed  the  threescore  years  and 
ten.  And  our  period  is  not  even  marked  on  the  second  hand  of 
Nature's  timepiece.  We  know  how  little  of  its  task  science  has 
done.  We  know  as  little  about  the  real  structure  of  a  protoplasmic 
cell  as  we  ever  did;  and  there  is  a  shrewrd  suspicion  that  in  our 
attempted  explanation  of  the  mystery  "  life  "  we  will  merely  suc- 
ceed in  pushing  the  problem  one  stage  farther  back.  The  distance 
of  the  nearest  star  is  inconceivable.  The  distance  of  the  farthest 
is  a  mere  row  of  figures  without  meaning.  Our  telescopes  plunge 
into  black  depths  of  space  between  the  southern  constellations 
which  so  far  represent  nothing  to  us  but  a  horrible  chasm.  Per- 
haps ages  ago  the  light  of  some  star  has  started  through  this  space 
not  to  reach  us  until  ages  hence.  Perhaps  by  the  time  such  light 
does  reach  us  the  star  itself  will  be  the  burnt-out  cinder  of  such 
a  world  as  that  toward  which  we  are  ourselves  tending.  And  if 
the  infinitely  great  is  beyond  our  grasp  so  completely  we  get  as  little 
consolation  out  of  the  infinitely  little.  Our  limit  of  microscopic 
visibility  is  to-day  about  1-7000  of  a  millimetre.  By  special 
devices  we  can  photograph  objects  of  i-ioooo  of  a  millimetre,  and 
by  still  further  indirect  devices  we  can,  by  means  of  the  diffused 
light  reflected  by  particles  exposed  to  a  strong  beam  of  light  detect 
their  presence  if  at  least  i-iooooo  of  a  millimetre  in  diameter. 
Speculatively  we  have  pushed  things  still  farther,  and,  by  means  of 
formulae  deduced  from  the  action  of  gases,  can  conceive  of  the 
diameter  of  an  atom  of  hydrogen  as  placed  at  not  less  than  id23 


338  SAKURAMBO 

of  a  millimetre.  Now  the  volume  of  Thompson's  corpuscles  are 
placed  at  but  io16  part  of  an  atom,  or  as  Mr.  Whetham  has 
graphically  stated  comparable  in  size  "  to  a  fly  roaming  about  inside 
a  cathedral"  What  man  does  get  therefore  out  of  his  study  in 
these  latter  days  of  his  physical  surroundings  is  the  sense  of  the 
vastness  of  this  universe.  A  vastness  that  makes  the  explanation 
of  it  in  the  past  seem  so  very  trifling,  makes  the  nature  of  the 
divinityship  evolved  by  those  ancient  communities  seem  so  very 
inadequate. 

When,  however,  we  look  on  this  great  system  of  suns  and 
worlds  with  its  countless  insoluble  problems,  let  alone  the  insolu- 
bility of  its  central  problem,  is  it  any  wonder  that  man,  after  having 
exhausted  every  rational  means,  should  cut  the  Gordian  knot  and 
fall  back  on  the  old  device  of  a  dens  ex  machijia,  in  which  he  can  at 
least  exhaust  all  his  powers  of  casuistry  and  dialectics  on  a  new 
field  of  argument,  which  logomachy  will  distract  him  from  the 
real  problem.  If  the  scheme  of  the  material  world  is  beyond 
his  grasp  he  can  at  least  devise  a  substitute  for  it,  and  try  and 
frame  his  facts  to  fit  that  substitute.  But  the  difficulties  that  this 
leads  us  into  are  greater  than  those  we  have  avoided,  for  our  mental 
grasp  is  too  limited  to  frame  such  scheme  for  this  grand  universe ; 
and  many,  baffled  and  beaten,  have  given  it  up  in  despair.  Many, 
however,  have  such  spiritual  hunger  that  the  limitations  of  the 
human  mind  is  a  constant  source  of  pain,  a  corroding  acid  eating 
into  their  very  souls.  Wandering  in  the  mazes  of  their  own  per- 
plexities, unwilling  to  accept  their  limitations,  "  kicking  against  the 
pricks,"  such  men  are  often  driven  in  their  attempt  to  measure  the 
infinite  by  the  finite,  to  abandon  all  effort  to  find  man's  true  place 
in  Nature,  and  they  fall  back  on  that  shadowy  authority  of  the 
past,  which  in  our  longing  to  communicate  with  it  has  such  influence 
over  us ;  for  after  all  it  is  the  only  tangible  thing  we  have  to  grasp. 
If  the  past  is  shadowland,  the  future  is  doubly  so.  It  is  an  unsatis- 
factory method  but  it  is  the  only  one  to  many  men;  for  human 
reason  is  not  such  as  to  solve  the  problems  presented  to  it.  Well 
did  Newman  express  this  agonized  cry  of  the  puzzled  human  soul, 


NUNC    DIMITIS 

when  he,  giving  up  the  battle  with  his  doubts,  sought  refuge  in 
Authority.  His  beautiful  hymn  appeals  to  all  engaged  in  this 
struggle  or  any  struggle  in  which  man  is  pitted  against  forces  too 
vast  for  him  and  lies  crushed  under  the  sense  of  his  insignificance. 
It  expresses  the  almost  dramatic  hopelessness  of  our  situation 
before  these  abysmal  depths  of  Space  and  Time, 

"  Lead  kindly  light  amid  the  encircling  gloom, 

Lead  thou  me  on, 
The  night  is  dark  and  I  am  far  from  home." 


FINIS. 


THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  LAST  DATE 
STAMPED  BELOW 


AN     INITIAL     FINE    OF    25     CENTS 

WILL  BE  ASSESSED  FOR  FAILURE  TO  RETURN 
THIS  BOOK  ON  THE  DATE  DUE.  THE  PENALTY 
WILL  INCREASE  TO  SO  CENTS  ON  THE  FOURTH 
DAY  AND  TO  $1.OO  ON  THE  SEVENTH  DAY 
OVERDUE. 


APR    1    1933 

APR    2    1933 

APR     3     T 


ocr 


1936 


OT 


REC'D  LD 

OCT181962 


LD  21-50w-l,'33 


^m 


W^WWMfMff^: 

>^W^:^:_^^-   .  * 


